- 1 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010545212026 NC: 2026:KHC:47299 CRL.P No. 11946 of 2026 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 31ST DAY OF AUGUST, 2026 BEFORE THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE S VISHWAJITH SHETTY CRIMINAL PETITION NO. 11946 OF 2026 BETWEEN: 1. MOHAMMAD HANEEF @ ALI MUNNA AGED ABOUT 40 YEARS S/O HASSINAR R/AT DERA HOUSE KURUDUPADAV POST PAIVALIKE VILLAGE KASARGOD DISTRICT - 671 348. 2. HABEEB HASANA @ ABBI AGED ABOUT 42 YEARS S/O B. HAMMAD R/AT B.K. COTTAGE NEAR ASHOK RICE MILL CHEMBUGUDDE, PERMANUR VILLAGE MANGALORE TALUK - 575 017. …PETITIONERS (BY SRI DILRAJ JUDE ROHIT SEQUEIRA, ADV.) AND: THE STATE, THE STATION HOUSE OFFICER BAJPE POLICE STATION, REP BY THE STATE PUBLIC PROSECUTOR HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA BANGALORE - 560 001. …RESPONDENT (BY SRI VINAY MAHADEVAIAH, HCGP) THIS CRL.P IS FILED U/S.439 (FILED U/S.483 BNSS) CR.P.C PRAYING TO PASS AN ORDER OF ENLARGING THE PETITIONER ON BAIL IN CONNECTION WITH SPL.C.NO.365/2025 ARISING OUT OF CRIME NO.9/2025 DATED 25.01.2025 PERTAINING TO THE BAJPE POLICE STATION, FOR THE OFFENCE P/US/ 351(3), 351(4), 308(4), 352, 111(2)(b), 111(4), 61(2)(a) R/W SEC.190 OF BNS AND Digitally signed by NANDINI M S Location: HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA - 2 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010545212026 NC: 2026:KHC:47299 CRL.P No. 11946 of 2026 SEC,.3(2) AND 3(4) OF THE KARNATAKA CONTROL OF ORGANIZED CRIMES ACT 2000 NOW PENDING ON THE FILE OF THE HONBLE COURT OF PRINCIPAL DISTRICT AND SESSIONS JUDGE AT MYSURU. THIS PETITION, COMING ON FOR ORDERS, THIS DAY, ORDER WAS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER: CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE S VISHWAJITH SHETTY ORAL ORDER 1. Accused Nos.3 and 6 in Special Case No.365 of 2025, pending before the Court of Principal District and Sessions Judge, Mysuru arising out of Crime No.9 of 2025 registered by Bajpe Police Station, Mangaluru City, for offences punishable under Sections 351(3), 351(4), 308(4), 352, 111(2)(b), 111(4), 238, 61(2)(a) R/w 190 of BNS, 2023, Section 42 of Karnataka Prisons (Amendment) Act, 2022 and Sections 3(2), 3(4) of Karnataka Control of Organized Crime Act, 2000 are before this Court in this petition filed under Section 483 of BNSS, 2023 seeking regular bail. 2. Heard the learned counsel for the parties. 3. FIR in Crime No.9 of 2025 was registered by Bajpe Police Station, Mangaluru City for initially for offences punishable under Sections 351(2), 351(3), 351(4) of BNS - 3 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010545212026 NC: 2026:KHC:47299 CRL.P No. 11946 of 2026 ,2023 against one Sri Kali Yogish, based on the first information dated 25.01.2025, received from Sri Ronald Fernandes son of Martin Fernandes, who is the alleged victim in the present case. During the course of investigation of the said case, accused no.3 was arrested on 25.04.2025 and accused no.6 was arrested on 11.06.2025. After completing investigation, charge sheet is filed against 8 persons. Bail application of the petitioners filed before the Court of jurisdictional Sessions Court in Sp.C.No.365 of 2025 was rejected on 05.05.2026. Therefore, they are before this Court. 4. Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that allegation against accused no.3 is that he had assisted accused no.2, who allegedly had made a phone call to the alleged victim from the jail on 05.02.2025 at the instance of accused no.1, after the FIR was registered in the present case and allegation against accused no.6 is that he had provided the mobile phone to accused no.2 for the purpose of making the phone call. He submits that, accused no.2 has been granted regular bail by this Court in Criminal Petition No.7304 of 2026 disposed of on 03.08.2026. In the earlier criminal cases registered against the - 4 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010545212026 NC: 2026:KHC:47299 CRL.P No. 11946 of 2026 petitioners, they have been granted bail. Accordingly, he prays to allow the petition. 5. Per contra, learned HCGP who has opposed the petition, however does not dispute the submission made by the learned counsel for the petitioners. 6. FIR in the present case was registered against accused no.1 - Kali Yogish for offences punishable under Sections 351(2), 351(3) and 351(4) of BNS 2023, based on the first information dated 25.01.2025 received from alleged victim Ronald Fernandez, who had complained that he had received threatening calls from accused no.1 from various phone numbers, the particulars of which are mentioned in the complaint. During the course of investigation, petitioners herein and some other accused were also arrested. 7. In the charge sheet which is filed against accused persons, it is mentioned that, after registration of FIR in the present case, at the instance of accused no.1, accused no.2 with the help of accused no.5, who is his wife had made a - 5 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010545212026 NC: 2026:KHC:47299 CRL.P No. 11946 of 2026 conference call to the victim demanding money and also had threatened him. Allegation against accused no.3 is that he had assisted accused nos.2 and 5 for making conference call to the alleged victim on 05.02.2025 and the allegation against accused no.6 is that he had provided mobile phone to accused no.2, who was in jail so as to enable him to make a threatening calls to the victim with the help of accused nos.3 and 5. 8. Accused no.2 had approached this Court in Criminal Petition No.7304 of 2026 and the said petition was allowed on 03.08.2026. In paragraph nos.6 to 10 of the said order, it is observed as follows:- "6. FIR in the present case was registered only against Kali Yogish, who is now arrayed as accused No.1 in the charge sheet. FIR was registered for offences punishable under Section 351(2), 351(3), 351(4) of BNS 2023, with an allegation that first informant had received multiple threatening calls from various phone numbers mentioned in the FIR, from the aforesaid Kali Yogish. In the charge sheet which is now filed against 8 persons, petitioner is arrayed as accused No.2. Allegation against the petitioner is that while he was in custody in the cases registered against - 6 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010545212026 NC: 2026:KHC:47299 CRL.P No. 11946 of 2026 him, at the instance of accused No.1, he had threatened the first informant on 05.02.2025, over a conference call which was routed by his wife- accused No.5. 7. According to the prosecution, the petitioner who was in jail was in possession of a mobile phone and was using SIM cards bearing Nos.7899097089 and 7411185992 and on 05.02.2025, he had threatened the first informant using his SIM card bearing No.7411185992. It is not in dispute that the aforesaid SIM cards and the mobile belonging to the petitioner have not been recovered in the present case. Allegation made against the petitioner is that he had destroyed the mobile phone as well as the SIM cards while in jail and had disposed of the same in the jail toilet. 8. FIR in the present case was registered on 25.01.2025. First informant who allegedly had received a threatening call from the petitioner at the instance of accused No.1 on 05.02.2025, had not approached the police immediately thereafter and statement of the first informant with regard to the alleged threat on 05.02.2025 was recorded for the first time on 22.04.2025, which is after a lapse of more than 75 days from the alleged date of threat. Meanwhile, petitioner's wife Mrs.Sameena Khanam was apprehended on 27.03.2025 and she was arrayed as accused No.5 in the present case. - 7 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010545212026 NC: 2026:KHC:47299 CRL.P No. 11946 of 2026 9. It is the case of the prosecution that during the course of her interrogation, accused No.5 had confessed about the call made to the first informant by her husband through a conference call on 05.02.2025. It is only based on the confession statement of accused No.5, subsequently the further statement of first informant was recorded on 22.04.2025 and petitioner was arrested in the present case on 25.04.2025. It is relevant to notice here that petitioner was in custody in Crime No.99/2024 registered by Mangalore North Police Station, Dakshina Kannada District, for offences punishable under the NDPS Act and Indian Arms Act, and in the said case he was granted regular bail by the trial Court in Special Case No.247/2024, vide order dated 01.03.2025. After the petitioner was granted bail in Crime No.99/2024, based on the confession statement of accused No.5 and the further statement of first informant dated 22.04.2025, the petitioner was arrested in the present case. The petitioner who was released from jail in Crime No.99 of 2024, was arrested in the present case on 25.04.2025 and once again remanded to the judicial custody. 10. It is not in dispute that in all the other criminal cases which were earlier registered against the petitioner he has been granted bail. The Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Prabhakar Tewari /vs./ State of Uttar Pradesh and Another - - 8 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010545212026 NC: 2026:KHC:47299 CRL.P No. 11946 of 2026 (2020) 11 SCC 648, has observed that merely for the reason that an accused is a person with criminal antecedents, his prayer for bail cannot be rejected if it is found that on merits he is entitled for the said relief. In the case on hand, considering the fact that for the first time, the first informant had made a statement before the Investigation Officer on 22.04.2025 with regard to the alleged threatening call made by the petitioner on 05.02.2025, when the FIR in the present case was already registered on 25.01.2025 and also having regard to the analysis of the matter made hereinabove, I am of the opinion that prayer made by the petitioner for regular bail needs to be answered, subject to appropriate conditions." 9. The reasoning assigned by this Court while granting regular bail to accused no.2 would be applicable to the case on hand since the allegation against the petitioners in this petition is that they had assisted accused no.2 for the purpose of making threatening phone call on 05.02.2025 to the alleged victim. Under the circumstances, I am of the opinion that the prayer made by the petitioners for grant of regular bail needs to be answered affirmatively. Accordingly, the following: - 9 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010545212026 NC: 2026:KHC:47299 CRL.P No. 11946 of 2026 ORDER (i) Criminal petition is allowed. (ii) The petitioners are directed to be enlarged on bail in Special Case No.365 of 2025, pending before the Court of Principal District and Sessions Judge, Mysuru arising out of Crime No.9 of 2025 registered by Bajpe Police Station, Mangaluru City, for offences punishable under Sections 351(3), 351(4), 308(4), 352, 111(2)(b), 111(4), 238, 61(2)(a) R/w 190 of BNS, 2023, Section 42 of the Karnataka Prisons (Amendment) Act, 2022 and Sections 3(2), 3(4) of Karnataka Control of Organized Crime Act, 2000, subject to the following conditions: a) Petitioners shall execute a personal bond for a sum of Rs.1,00,000/- (Rupees One Lakh only) each with two sureties for the likesum, to the satisfaction of the jurisdictional Court; b) The petitioners shall appear regularly on all the dates of hearing before the Trial Court unless the Trial Court exempts their appearance for valid reasons; - 10 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010545212026 NC: 2026:KHC:47299 CRL.P No. 11946 of 2026 c) The petitioners shall not directly or indirectly threaten or tamper with the prosecution witnesses; d) The petitioners shall not involve in similar offences in future: e) The petitioners shall not leave the jurisdiction of the Trial Court without permission of the said Court until the case registered against them is disposed off. Sd/- (S VISHWAJITH SHETTY) JUDGE NMS List No.: 1 Sl No.: 80