902 ABA-2359-2026.DOC skt IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION ANTICIPATORY BAIL APPLICATION NO. 2359 OF 2026 Shivtej Pote …Applicant Vs. State of Maharashtra …Respondent Mr. Siddharth Agarwal (VC) a/w. Mr. Ganesh Pandit, for the Applicant. Ms.Savita M. Yadav, APP for the Respondent-State. PSI V.V. Patil, Cyber Police Station, Pimpri Chinchwad. CORAM: MADHAV J. JAMDAR, J. DATE : 29th AUGUST, 2026 P. C.: 1. By this Application filed under Section 482 of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, the Applicant is seeking pre-arrest bail in connection with C.R. No. 358 of 2024 registered with Chinchwad Police Station for the offences punishable under Sections 205, 308(1), 316(2), 318(4), 319(2), 336(3), 3(5) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 and Section 66(C), 66(D) of the Information Technology Act, 2008. 2. The prosecution case is set out in paragraph Nos. 2 and 3 of order dated 30th July, 2026 passed by learned Additional Sessions 29th August, 2026 902 ABA-2359-2026.DOC skt Judge, Pimpri Chinchwad, Pune in Anticipatory Bail Application No. 854 of 2026. The said paragraph Nos. 2 and 3 read as under :- “2. The First Information Report was lodged on 09.09.2024 by the informant, Umesh Prabhakar Lele, alleging that on 06.09.2024, he received a call from mobile number 9977755420. The caller introduced himself as an employee of SBI Customer Service and informed the informant that an amount of Rs. 10,09,669/- was shown as recoverable from his account in Mumbai. The informant replied that he did not have any bank account in Mumbai. Thereafter, the caller informed him that the call would be transferred to the Mumbai Police and disconnected the call. Subsequently, the informant received a video call from another person dressed in a Mumbai Police uniform and cap, who claimed to be a police officer. The said person asked for the informant's bank account details and Aadhaar card number, stating that the information was required for verification by the CBI. Believing the caller to be a 29th August, 2026 902 ABA-2359-2026.DOC skt genuine police officer, the informant disclosed his bank account details and Aadhaar number. 3. Thereafter, the informant was informed that his Aadhaar card had allegedly been sold for Rs. 90,000/- and that he was liable to be arrested by the police and officers of the Enforcement Directorate. Subsequently, he received a notice issued in the name of Niraj Kumar, claiming to be a Director of the ED, alleging that one Suresh Anurag had committed a fraud of Rs. 2.5 crores in the name of the informant and that the informant's debit card had been used in the commission of the offence. The informant was thereby subjected to a digital arrest. Out of fear, he was instructed to transfer money from his bank account to various bank accounts, accordingly, the informant transferred a total amount of Rs. 1,08,00,000/- (Rupees One Crore Eight Lakhs only) to various bank accounts referred to in the FIR. After a few days, he realised that he had been cheated by the said persons. Accordingly, he approached the 29th August, 2026 902 ABA-2359-2026.DOC skt police station and lodged the FIR, pursuant to which the present offence came to be registered. The applicant apprehends arrest at the hands of the police. Hence, the present application.” 3. Thus, as per the prosecution case, the victim was subjected to digital arrest and the Accused have represented that they are Mumbai Police. As far as the role of the Applicant is concerned, he has obtained the bank account details and Aadhaar card number of the victim with the assistance of the Accused No. 6 who operated the said account from Udaypur, Rajasthan. The victim due to fear of arrest has transferred an amount of Rs. 1,08,00,000/- to various bank accounts. The Applicant is already arrested and in jail in connection with similar offence in C.R. No. 5 of 2026 registered with Cyber Police Station, Pimpri, Chichwad. 4. In these facts and circumstances, as the offence is very grave and as there is one case of digital arrest registered against the Applicant, no case is made out for grant of anticipatory bail . The Anticipatory Bail Application is dismissed. Page 4 of 5 29th August, 2026 902 ABA-2359-2026.DOC skt 5. The observations in this order are made for considering the present Anticipatory Bail Application. The learned Trial Court shall not be influenced by any of the observations made hereinabove and shall decide the case on its own merits. [MADHAV J. JAMDAR, J.] 29th August, 2026