1 2026:CGHC:25250 NAFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR MCRC No. 4537 of 2026 Ayush Sinha @ Deep S/o Late Tribhuvan Sinha Aged About 35 Years Occupation- Business, Caste- Kayastha, R/o Mo. Sattipara, P.S. And Tehsil Ambikapur, District- Surguja (C.G.) ... Applicant versus State Of Chhattisgarh Through- Station House Officer, Police Station Ambikapur, District Surguja (C.G.) ... Respondent (Cause title taken from Case Information System) For Applicant : Mr. Shakti Raj Sinha, Advocate For Respondent/State : Mr. Vinod Tekam, Govt. Advocate Hon'ble Shri Justice Ravindra Kumar Agrawal Order on Board 19/06/2026 1. This is the first bail application under Section 483 of the Bhartiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 filed by the applicant, who is initially arrested on 14.05.2024 for the offence under Sections 7 and 8 of Chhattisgarh Gambling (Prohibition) Act, 2022 and was released on regular bail by the learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Ambikapur vide order dated 14.05.2024. Subsequently during investigation, conspiracy and forgery of documents and using of forged documents VED PRAKASH DEWANGAN Digitally signed by VED PRAKASH DEWANGAN Date: 2026.06.27 16:23:49 +0530 2 were found and the offence of Sections 467, 468, 471 and 120-B of the IPC was added and the regular bail application of the present applicant has been rejected by the learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Ambikapur vide order dated 21.07.2025 and thereafter the applicant Ayush Sinha @ Deep is again arrested on 17.01.2026 in connection with Crime No. 325 of 2024, registered at Police Station Ambikapur, District Surguja (C.G.), for the offence under Sections 420, 467, 468, 471, 120-B of IPC, Sections 7, 8 of Chhattisgarh Gambling (Prohibition) Act, 2022 and Sections 66-C and 66-D of Information Technology Act, 2000 and supplementary charge sheet has been filed against him. 2. The case of the prosecution is that on 13-05-2024, the police of Police Station Ambikapur received secret information that 03 persons, namely Ayush Sinha @ Deep Sinha, Amit Mishra @ Pahalu and Shubham Keshari, are engaged in online gambling through their mobile phone by using the skyexchange betting app and betting on the IPL cricket match between Gujrat Titans versus Kolkata Knight Riders. On a raid being conducted, the police have arrested the 03 accused persons who were engaged in playing online gambling. They were taken to the police station and interrogated by the police. From their mobile phone, sufficient evidence of their involvement in online gambling was found, and from Ayush Sinha @ Deep Sinha 03 mobile phones, 03 passbooks and a cheque book were seized which are in the name of other persons, from the accused Shubham Keshari one mobile phone, one cheque book, 13 ATM cards of various persons were seized and from the accused Amit Mishra 15 mobile phones, 08 ATM cards of various persons, one cheque book 3 and cash of Rs. 20100/- has been seized. When the details of the bank account were obtained, it was found that the bank account was opened fraudulently, and the persons in whose names the bank account is running have no knowledge of their bank account. From the mobile phone of accused Amit Mishra @ Pahalu, in the WhatsApp chat, various chatting from the persons who are playing online gambling and money transaction through PhonePe app were found and the information was maintained in a register by Shubham Kesari and WhatsApp chat of other accused persons were also found. The WhatsApp chat between the accused persons were record in a print out. The accused Amit Mishra @ Pahalu discloses the involvement of other persons namely Uttam, mobile No. 9131805954, Smoki, mobile No. 7773863800, Bharat, mobile No. 9109867986, Satyam Kesari, mobile No. 8770992624 and Dhurvil Patel, mobile No. 9584784147 that they made the bank accounts of other persons available for money transaction. During the investigation, the involvement of Mukesh Tripathi was also found by the police. The involvement of Abhas Paswan was also found and from the statement of Abhas Paswan, the name of the Ritik Mandalwar and Nitin Yadav were disclosed, who involved in opening of new bank accounts. From the investigation, the involvement of Dhurvil Patel was also found and from Dhurvil Patel, one mobile phone, 07 debit cards, one passbook, one cheque book, Aadhar card, driving license and PAN card have been seized. The applicant Ayush Sinha @ Deep has been arrested on 17.01.2026 and charge sheet has been filed. 4 3. Learned counsel for the applicant would submit that, there is no sufficient evidence against the applicant that he is involved in online gambling in any manner. Initially, the applicant was arrested for the offence under Sections 7 and 8 of the Chhattisgarh Gambling (Prohibition) Act, 2022 and he was released on bail by the learned trial Court. Subsequently, after about 14 months, the offence of Sections 467, 468, 471 and 120-B of the IPC are added his bail bond has been cancelled. When the applicant was arrested initially, only the allegation under Sections 7 and 8 of the Act of 2022 was there and in subsequent investigation the other offences were disclosed with respect to the other co-accused persons and not against the present applicant. For the very same material, the other offences have been added and his bail bond has been cancelled. Once the applicant has been released on bail, subsequent adding of other offences would entitled him for grant of bail in subsequent offences also. Except from the electronic evidence and memorandum of co- accused persons, there is no incriminating evidence against the applicant that he involved in forgery of any document or money transaction through mule bank account. He would also submit that the co-accused persons Ritik Mandilwar, Mukesh Tripathi, Dhurvil Patel and Amit Mishra have been released on regular bail by the Hon'ble Supreme Court vide order dated 09.02.2026 (SLP (Crl) No. 1255 of 2026) dated 09.04.2026 (SLP (Crl) No. 5849 of 2026) and dated 05.01.2026 (SLP (Crl) No. 20654 of 2025) and dated 22.04.2026 (Criminal Appeal No. 2098 of 2026), respectively. The case of co-accused Amit Mishra is exactly the same with the case of the present applicant, who has been granted bail by the Hon'ble 5 Supreme Court. There is no previous criminal antecedent of the applicant. The investigation has been completed and charge sheet has been filed, final adjudication of the case will take its own time, and therefore, the applicant may be released on bail. 4. On the other hand, learned counsel appearing for the State opposes and submits that there is sufficient evidence against the applicant that he is also involved in organized online gambling along with other accused persons. The accused persons were actively involved in online gambling through their mobile phone by using skyexchange Betting App and from the applicant, 03 mobile phones, 03 passbooks of different persons, one cheque book have been seized. From his mobile phone, incriminating evidence against him and involvement of other accused persons were detected, bank transactions were found and they managed the mule bank account, ATM cards, and they divided their work as per their convenience. The other accused persons have also actively engaged in playing online gambling, and the money circulation was done through the bank account managed by the other accused persons. Therefore, the applicant is not entitled to be released on bail. 5. I have heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the case diary. 6. From perusal of the case diary, it transpires that the applicant was arrested on 14.05.2024 and was released on regular bail on the same day by the learned Chief Judicial Magistrate. On 21.07.2025 i.e. after about 14 months of the earlier arrest and release of the applicant on regular bail, the offence of Sections 467, 468, 471 and 6 120-B of the IPC have been added and the applicant was again arrested on 17.01.2026. At the time of arrest of the applicant, the mobile phones, bank passbooks and cheque book have already been seized and no other incriminating material have been seized thereafter from the applicant. Though the involvement of other accused persons were found, but except their memorandum statement, no further evidence have came in the case diary against the applicant. The material available against the applicant in the case diary, he was released on bail on 14.05.2024 by the learned trial Court. After adding the other offences, he is again arrested on 17.01.2026. 7. In the present case, subsequent to grant of regular bail to the applicant, graver offences under Sections 467, 468, 471 and 120-B of the IPC came to be added during the course of investigation. However, the mere addition of graver offences does not ipso facto disentitle an accused from seeking regular bail in respect of the newly added offences. The Hon'ble Supreme Court in Pradeep Ram v. State of Jharkhand, (2019) 17 SCC 326, while considering the effect of addition of graver and non-bailable offences after grant of bail, has held that although the investigating agency may seek custody of the accused after obtaining appropriate orders from the competent Court, the accused is equally entitled to surrender and seek regular bail in respect of the newly added offences and such application has to be considered on its own merits. In the present case, the material which formed the basis of the prosecution case against the applicant, namely the mobile phones, passbooks and cheque book, had already been seized at the time of his first arrest 7 when he was enlarged on regular bail. No fresh recovery has thereafter been effected from the applicant. Except the addition of penal provisions and the memorandum statements of co-accused persons, no substantial fresh incriminating material has been brought on record against the applicant. 8. Taking into consideration the entire facts and circumstances of the case, particularly the fact that the applicant was initially arrested on 14.05.2024 and was released on regular bail by the learned Chief Judicial Magistrate on the very same day; thereafter, after about 14 months, additional offences under Sections 467, 468, 471 and 120-B of the IPC were added during investigation, no fresh recovery or other incriminating material has been collected from the present applicant after his initial arrest except the material which was already available at the time when he was granted regular bail, the investigation has been completed and supplementary charge-sheet has already been filed, similarly placed co-accused Amit Mishra and other co-accused persons Ritik Mandilwar, Mukesh Tripathi and Dhurvil Patel have been released on regular bail by the Hon'ble Supreme Court vide order dated 22.04.2026 (Criminal Appeal No. 2098 of 2026), dated 09.02.2026 (SLP (Crl) No. 1255 of 2026) dated 09.04.2026 (SLP (Crl) No. 5849 of 2026) and dated 05.01.2026 (SLP (Crl) No. 20654 of 2025), respectively, investigation has been completed and charge sheet has been filed, the applicant is in jail since 17.01.2026, final adjudication will take its own time and that no other criminal antecedent has been disclosed against the present applicant, in view of the aforesaid peculiar facts with respect to the present applicant in the case, without expressing any opinion on the 8 merits of the prosecution case, this Court is inclined to enlarge the applicant on regular bail. 9. Accordingly, the present bail application of the applicant Ayush Sinha @ Deep is allowed. 10. It is directed that the applicant shall be released on bail on his furnishing a personal bond in the sum of Rs. 1,00,000/- with one surety in the like sum to the satisfaction of the concerned Trial Court, on following conditions:- (i) He shall not directly or indirectly make any inducement, threat or promise to any person acquainted with the facts of the case so as to dissuade him from disclosing such fact to the Court. (ii) He shall not act in any manner which will be prejudicial to fair and expeditious trial. (iii) He shall appear before the trial Court on each and every date given to him by the concerned trial Court till disposal of the trial. Sd/- (Ravindra Kumar Agrawal) Judge ved