1 15-Cr.ABA-725-2026 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY NAGPUR BENCH, NAGPUR. CRIMINAL APPLICATION [A.B.A.] NO. 725 OF 2026 Deepak S/o Prabhakar Rathod -- VERSUS -- The State of Maharashtra __________________________________________________________________________ Office Notes, Office Memoranda of Coram, appearances, Court's orders of directions Court's or Judge's orders. and Registrar's Orders. Mr. Vijaykumar Paliwal, Advocate for the Applicant. Mr. N.B. Jawade, A.P.P. for the Non-applicant/State. CORAM : M.M. NERLIKAR, J. DATE : SEPTEMBER 04, 2026. Heard. 2. Apprehending arrest, the applicant has approached this Court in connection with Crime No.150/2026 for the offences punishable under Sections 115(2), 3(5), 75(1), 75(1)(i), 75(1) (ii), 351(2), 352, 85 and 89 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, registered with Police Station Sakharkheda, District Buldhana. 3. The prosecution case, as set out in the First Information Report, is that the informant, aged about 28 years, was married to accused No.1 on 23/05/2024 according to the customary rites. It is alleged that, her parental family had given gold ornaments, cash of Rs.17,00,000/- and household articles Piyush Mahajan 2026:BHC-NAG:11688 2 15-Cr.ABA-725-2026 at the time of marriage. After marriage, she resided with her husband and his family members at Thane. It is further alleged that accused No.1 subjected her to physical and mental cruelty, including assault and threats, and that she was compelled to undergo abortion on two occasions. It is further alleged that accused No.4, i.e., her brother-in-law, made inappropriate advances towards her, pursuant to which she informed her parents and her husband. She also alleged that her in-laws demanded an amount of Rs.20,00,000/- from her parental family for purchasing a flat and subjected her to further harassment. According to the informant, owing to the alleged ill-treatment, assaults and repeated demands, she ultimately returned to her parental home and thereafter approached the police, seeking legal action against the accused persons. 4. The learned counsel for the applicant submits that this Court has already granted interim protection to the applicant by its order dated 13/08/2026. The allegations against the applicant, who is the brother-in-law of the informant and that he has attempted disrobe her. He further submits that, considering the nature of the allegations and circumstances in which the same has been made, the allegations cannot be believed. He further submits that the entire family has been robbed by the informant. Under such circumstances, he prays for grant of pre-arrest bail. Piyush Mahajan 3 15-Cr.ABA-725-2026 5. On the other hand, the learned A.P.P. has tendered across the bar the affidavit-in-reply and submits that the allegations are serious in nature. The applicant is the brother-in- law of the informant and his conduct is highly objectionable, as he had attempted to disrobe his sister-in-law, therefore, he prays to reject the bail. 6. I have considered the rival submissions. I have gone through the case diary and the F.I.R. From the F.I.R., it appears that, insofar as the present applicant is concerned, the allegations are with respect to harassment, wherein the applicant had attempted to disrobe his sister-in-law on one occasion. Considering the nature of the allegations, I am of the considered opinion that custodial interrogation would not be necessary. Hence, the following order:- O R D E R (i) The Criminal Application is allowed and disposed of; (ii) The order dated 13/08/2026 is hereby confirmed on the same terms and conditions as incorporated in the said order; (iii) Pending Misc. Application(s), if any, also stand disposed of; (iv) The observations of this Court are prima facie in nature and are only limited to this application. The Piyush Mahajan 4 15-Cr.ABA-725-2026 trial Court shall not be influenced by the aforesaid observations. [ (M.M. NERLIKAR, J.) Piyush Mahajan Signed by: Piyush Ramesh Mahajan Designation: PA To Honourable Judge Date: 04/09/2026 17:23:20