(AFR) Neutral Citation No. - 2025:AHC:101582 Court No. - 85 Case :- MATTERS UNDER ARTICLE 227 No. - 5913 of 2025 Petitioner :- Satish Kumar Gupta Respondent :- State of U.P. and Another Counsel for Petitioner :- Manvendra Singh Counsel for Respondent :- G.A. Hon'ble Ms. Nand Prabha Shukla,J. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner, learned A.G.A. for the State and perused the record. The instant petition under Article 227 of the Constitution of India has been filed with a prayer to set aside the judgment and order dated 07.04.2025 passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Special Judge SC/ST Act, Baghpat, in Criminal Revision No. 69 of 2024 (Satish Kumar Gupta vs. State of U.P. and another) as well as impugned cognizance order dated 25.08.2017 passed by Chief Judicial Magistrate, Baghpat in Criminal Case No. 3599 of 2017 (State vs. Satish Kumar Gupta) arising out of Case Crime No. 303 of 2017, under Sections 16, 17, 18, 19 & 20 of the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976, Police Station Baghpat, District Baghpat as well as entire proceedings of aforesaid Criminal Case No. 3599 of 2017 (State Vs. Satish Kumar Gupta) pending in the Court of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Baghpat. Learned counsel for the petitioner has confined his prayer seeking relief by moving the discharge application before the Court concerned at the appropriate stage. Per contra, learned AGA for the State has vehemently opposed the aforesaid prayer and relied on Section 21 of the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976, which is provided as under:- "21. Offences to be tried by Executive Magistrates.- (1) The State Government may confer, on an Executive Magistrate, the powers of a Judicial Magistrate of the first class or of the second class for the trial of offences under this Act; and, on such conferment of powers, the Executive Magistrate on whom the powers are so conferred, shall be deemed, for the purposes of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), to be a Judicial Magistrate of the first class, or of the second class, as the case may be. (2) An offence under this Act may be tried summarily by a Magistrate." As the offences under the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976 are tried summarily by a Magistrate, therefore, it is hereby directed to the Court concerned to consider and decide the matter in terms of Chapter XX and XXI of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973. With the aforesaid direction, the petition is disposed of. Order Date :- 1.7.2025 Aditya Tripathi Digitally signed by :- ADITYA TRIPATHI High Court of Judicature at Allahabad