912-ABA-1654-2026.odt Harish IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION ANTICIPATORY BAIL APPLICATION NO. 1654 OF 2026 Kapil Omkar Damodar ...Applicant V/S. The State Of Maharashtra And Anr. ...Respondents _____________________________________________________________ Adv. Dinesh Adsole a/w Chinmay Bhole, for the Applicant. Adv. Ashok S. Gawai, APP for the Respondent – State. Adv. Ashish Agarkar, for the Respondent No.2 on (vc). PSI – Mr. Nitin Jadhav, Kapurbawdi, Police Station Thane (City) is present. ________________________________________________________ CORAM : PRAFULLA S. KHUBALKAR, J. DATE : 02ND SEPTEMBER, 2026. P.C. :- 1. Heard learned counsel for the applicant as well as learned APP for the respondent-state and learned counsel for the respondent no.2. 2. The applicant has filed the instant application seeking pre-arrest bail in connection with Crime No. 263 of 2026 dated 01.06.2026 registered with Kapurbawdi Police Station, Thane (City), for the offence punishable under Sections 75, 78 and 351(2) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023. 3. The offence is registered on the basis of a report lodged by the complainant alleging certain acts of stalking and sexual harassment,as stated 1/4 912-ABA-1654-2026.odt specifically in the report. The complainant has alleged that the applicant is residing in front of her house and has repeatedly indulged in certain acts amounting to ‘stalking’ and ‘sexual harassment’. 4. Learned counsel for the applicant states that the applicant and the complainant are residents of the same building on the same floor and the allegations are levelled on the basis of some misunderstanding and wrong perceptions of the complainant. He states that the applicant is employed in HDFC Bank and is a married person and had no intention to commit any of the alleged offences. 5. It is also submitted on behalf of the applicant that amongst all the offences, the offence under Section 75 is the only non-congnizable offence, which is punishable with imprisonment up to three years only. He states that, considering the nature of allegations, the applicant has already expressed readiness to join in the investigation and in view of the interim protection granted by this Court by order dated 22nd July, 2026, the applicant has attended the police station and has surrendered his mobile phone along with Electronic Gadgets as demanded by the investigating agency. He, therefore, prays for the confirmation of the interim protection. 6. As against this, learned APP for the respondent submitted that the complainant has levelled specific allegations about the offence and the acts of stalking, as stated in the FIR. He also submits that the conduct of the 2/4 912-ABA-1654-2026.odt applicant has caused harassment to the complainant and investigation in this regard is going on. Even the learned counsel for the respondent no.2 also opposed the application by pointing out the specific allegations in the FIR. However, there is no dispute about the contention that the applicant has attended the police station in accordance with the interim protection order. 7. Perused the FIR and the documents on record. It has to be noted that the offences alleged are punishable with imprisonment up to three years. At this stage, there is no material to conclude about the actual incidents alleged by the complainant in the report. In any case, considering the fact that the applicant is employed in a bank and has joined in the investigation by attending the police station, at this stage, his custodial interrogation need not be insisted upon. 8. Considering of all the above mentioned aspects and the fact that the alleged offences are punishable with imprisonment upto three years, the interim protection granted by this Court needs to be confirmed, subject to certain conditions. 9. Hence, I pass the following order : : ORDER : i] The anticipatory bail application is allowed. ii] In the event of arrest of this applicant in Crime No. 263 of 2026 dated 01.06.2026 registered with 3/4 912-ABA-1654-2026.odt Kapurbawdi Police Station Thane (City) for the offence punishable under Sections 75, 78 and 351(2) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, he be released on P. R. bond of Rs. 25,000 (Twenty Five Thousand Only), with one solvent surety of like amount. iii] The applicant shall not contact the complainant or any of the prosecution witnesses in any manner including through social media. iv] The applicant shall attend the police station as and when called upon by the investigating agency till filing of the charge-sheet. v] Breach of any of the above mentioned conditions shall be a ground for cancellation of bail. 10. In view of this, the anticipatory bail application is allowed and disposed of. (PRAFULLA S. KHUBALKAR, J.) 4/4