- 1 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:46917 CRL.P No. 12529 of 2025 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 17TH DAY OF NOVEMBER, 2025 BEFORE THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE S VISHWAJITH SHETTY CRIMINAL PETITION NO. 12529 OF 2025 BETWEEN: SRI ANAND KUMAR @ ANAND, S/O LATE MUNISIDDAPPA, AGED ABOUT 24 YEARS, RESIDING AT NEAR GAYATHRI STORE, TENNIS COURT ROAD, KEMPEGOWDA NAGAR, THINDLU MAIN ROAD, VIDYARANAYAPURA POST, BANGALORE - 560 097. …PETITIONER (BY SRI. RAJESH.A., ADVOCATE) AND: 1. STATE BY KODIGEHALLY POLICE STATION, REPRESENTED BY STATE PUBLIC PROSECUTOR, HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA, BENGALURU - 560 001. 2. XXX XXX, …RESPONDENTS (BY SRI. CHENNAPPA EERAPPA, HCGP FOR R1; R2- SERVED AND UNREPRESENTED) THIS CRL.P IS FILED U/S 439 CR.PC (FILED U/S 483 BNSS) PRAYING TO RELEASE THE ACCUSED ON REGULAR BAIL IN SPL.C NO.854/2025 CONNECTED WITH CR.NO.44/2025 OF THE KODIGEHALLY P.S FOR AN O/P/U/S 64(2)(m), 65(1), 87 BNS, 2023 SEC. 9 OF PCM ACT 2012 AND SEC. 4(2), 5(l), 6 POCSO ACT 2012, PENDING BEFORE THE COURT, 7TH ACMM COURT, BENGALURU. Digitally signed by KAVYA R Location: High Court of Karnataka - 2 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:46917 CRL.P No. 12529 of 2025 THIS PETITION, COMING ON FOR ORDERS, THIS DAY, ORDER WAS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER: CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE S VISHWAJITH SHETTY ORAL ORDER Accused in S.C.No.854/2025 pending before the Court of Additional District and Session Judge and FTSC-IV, Bengaluru, arising out of Crime No.44/2025 registered by Kodigehalli Police Station, Bengaluru City, for offences punishable under Sections 4(2), 5(l), 6 of the Protection of Children from sexual Offences Act, 2012 (for short 'POCSO Act'), Sections 64(2)(m), 65(1), 87 of BNS, 2023 and Section 9 of the Prohibition of the Child Marriage Act, 2006, is before this Court in this successive bail application filed under Section 483 of BNSS, 2023 seeking regular bail. 2. Heard the learned Counsel for the parties. 3. FIR in Crime No.44/2025 was registered by Kodigehalli Police Station, Bengaluru City, initially for the offence punishable under Section 137(2) of BNS, 2023 - 3 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:46917 CRL.P No. 12529 of 2025 against unknown persons, based on the first information dated 04.02.2025 received from respondent No.2 herein, who is the mother of the victim girl. 4. During the course of investigation, petitioner and the victim girl were traced together. Petitioner was arrested and remanded to judicial custody on 20.02.2025. After completing investigation, chargesheet has been filed against him for the aforesaid offences. Bail application filed by the petitioner before the Jurisdictional Sessions Court was rejected and thereafter, he had approached this Court in Crl.P.No.8464/2025 which was dismissed as withdrawn on 18.07.2025, with liberty to the petitioner to renew his bail application, after all the material chargesheet witnesses are examined. Therefore, petitioner is before this Court in this successive bail application. 5. Learned Counsel for the petitioner submits that petitioner is a youngster aged about 24 years having no criminal antecedents. All the material charge sheet witnesses are now examined before the Trial Court. - 4 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:46917 CRL.P No. 12529 of 2025 Continued detention of the petitioner is likely to have adverse impact on his career. Accordingly, he prays to allow this petition. 6. Per contra, learned HCGP has opposed the petition. 7. Perusal of the material on record would go to show that first information was submitted by respondent No.2 who is the mother of the victim girl on 04.02.2025, alleging that her minor daughter had left their house on 03.02.2025 had not returned home. Efforts made to trace her had failed and therefore, she has approached the police. During the course of investigation petitioner and the victim girl were traced together in the house of the relative of the petitioner. Petitioner was arrested and remanded to judicial custody on 20.02.2025. In the charge sheet it is alleged that petitioner was pestering the victim girl to love him and on 03.02.2025 he had threatened the victim girl and had taken her along with him to a temple at Maakalidurga, Doddaballapura, Gowribidanur main road - 5 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:46917 CRL.P No. 12529 of 2025 and married her by exchanging garlands. Thereafter, he had taken her to Dharmasthala and stayed there for about four days and subsequently returned to his relatives house and on 17.02.2025 he had mixed sleeping pills in the drinking water and thereafter had sexual intercourse with the victim girl. 8. During the course of trial, victim girl has been examined as P.W.-1. Victim girl has stated that she was acquainted with the petitioner and they had got married in a temple near Goribidanur and thereafter had gone to Dharmasthala and had stayed there for four days and subsequently, they had gone to a village festival at Doddaballapura and stayed for a period of seven days in the house of the petitioner's relatives. In the said house petitioner allegedly had sexual intercourse with her multiple times and police who came to the said house, brought them back. The prosecution has examined victim's mother as P.W-2 and the doctor who had medically examined the victim girl has been examined before the - 6 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:46917 CRL.P No. 12529 of 2025 Trial Court as P.W-3. The headmistress of the school in which the victim girl was studying has been examined as P.W-4 and the mahazar witnesses have been examined as P.W-5 and P.W-6 and the police officer who had partly investigated the case on hand has been examined as P.W-7. From the aforesaid, it is apparrent that prosecution has examined all the material charge sheet witnesses in the present case and therefore, there cannot be any apprehension that the petitioner is likely to tamper with the material prosecution witnesses. 9. Petitioner is a youngster aged about 24 years having no other criminal antecedents. He is in custody for the last nearly nine months. It is trite that accused person cannot be detained in custody as a punitive/preventive measure. Out of the 22 charge sheet witnesses cited in the present case as on this date only 7 witnesses have been examined. Under the circumstances, I am of the view that without expressing any opinion on the merits and demerits of the case, the prayer made by the petitioner for grant of - 7 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:46917 CRL.P No. 12529 of 2025 regular bail needs to be answered affirmatively. Accordingly, the following:- ORDER The petition is allowed. The petitioner is directed to be enlarged on bail in S.C.No.854/2025 pending before the Court of Additional District and Session Judge and FTSC-IV, Bengaluru, arising out of Crime No.44/2025 registered by Kodigehalli Police Station, Bengaluru City, for offences punishable under Sections 4(2), 5(l), 6 of the POCSO Act, Sections 64(2)(m), 65(1), 87 of BNS, 2023 and Section 9 of the Prohibition of the Child Marriage Act, 2006, subject to the following conditions: a) The petitioner shall execute personal bond for a sum of Rs.1,00,000/- (Rupees One Lakh only) with two sureties for the likesum, to the satisfaction of the jurisdictional Court; b) The petitioner shall appear regularly on all the dates of hearing before the Trial - 8 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:46917 CRL.P No. 12529 of 2025 Court unless the Trial Court exempts his appearance for valid reasons; c) The petitioner shall not directly or indirectly threaten or tamper with the prosecution witnesses; d) The petitioner shall not involve in similar offences in future; e) The petitioner shall not leave the jurisdiction of the Trial Court without permission of the said Court until the case registered against him is disposed off. Sd/- (S VISHWAJITH SHETTY) JUDGE KVR List No.: 1 Sl No.: 4