1 19-Cr.BA-981-2026 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY NAGPUR BENCH, NAGPUR. CRIMINAL APPLICATION [B.A.] NO. 981 OF 2026 Prarabdha @ Shree Rajesh Kirtiwar -- VERSUS -- State of Maharashtra and Another __________________________________________________________________________ Office Notes, Office Memoranda of Coram, appearances, Court's orders of directions Court's or Judge's orders. and Registrar's Orders. Mr. S.V. Sirpurkar, Advocate a/w. Mr. Dhruv Sirpurkar, Advocate for the Applicant. Mr. U.R. Phasate, A.P.P. for the Non-applicant No.1/State. Ms. Anvita Pande, Advocate (appointed) for the Non-applicant No.2. CORAM : M.M. NERLIKAR, J. DATE : SEPTEMBER 03, 2026. Heard. 2. The present application is filed for seeking regular bail in Crime No.315/2026 for the offences punishable under Sections 64(1), 64(2)(i) (k), 64(2)(j), 64(2)(m), 75(1)(i)(ii), 351(2) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, Sections 4, 6 and 12 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012, and Sections 67-A and 67-B of the Information Technology Act, 2000, registered with Police Station Mul, District Chandrapur. 3. The prosecution case is that, the informant is a minor girl aged about 16 years. She Piyush Mahajan 2026:BHC-NAG:11814 2 19-Cr.BA-981-2026 was acquainted with the applicant since he was her senior at school. It is alleged that in the month of October, the applicant proposed the victim through snapchat, thereafter, the victim accepted his proposal leading to their love affair. It is further alleged that the applicant contacted her through Snapchat and asked her to meet him on 02/11/2025. Therein he took her to his residence, and committed sexual intercourse against her wishes. It is also alleged that the applicant subsequently threatened the informant and compelled her to meet him, thereafter, he again committed sexual intercourse on multiple occasions. Whereas, on 30 November, the applicant threatened the victim by stating that he will viral her videos and he will kill her. Due to fear, the informant did not disclose the matter to her family. Thereafter, on 10/04/2026, she disclosed the matter to her family, pursuant to which the present report came to be lodged. 4. The learned counsel for the applicant submits that the name of the present applicant does not appear in the First Information Report. He further submitted that while describing the incident to the doctor, the victim has not disclose about the applicant. It was only on 13/04/2026 that the supplementary statement of the victim was recorded, Piyush Mahajan 3 19-Cr.BA-981-2026 wherein she implicated 6 accused persons, and therefore, he submits that such statement cannot be believed. He further submits that, as far as the allegations in the supplementary statement regarding the present applicant are concerned, it was alleged that the said incident took place on 26/01/2026 in the cafe owned by the present applicant. However, he invited my attention to the transactions of the cafe’s account, wherein the learned counsel submits that the cafe was not closed or the shutter was not down, since the customers were coming to the cafe and they also made payments. Under such circumstances, he submits that the story narrated by the victim is not supported by any material on record and appears to be a concocted story. He further submits that there is no corroborative evidence to show that the shutter of the cafe was closed at the time of the alleged sexual assault. He points out that the cafe is situated on the Mul Chandrapur Highway, which is a busy and permanent market area. He further submits that a bank is situated opposite to the applicant's cafe, however, no CCTV footage has been recovered in order to show that the victim at any point of time entered into the cafe. The alleged video was not found in the mobile phone of the applicant, which has been seized in connection with another crime, i.e., Crime No. 310/2026. In the said crime, the Piyush Mahajan 4 19-Cr.BA-981-2026 applicant was released on bail by the learned Sessions Court, observing that the allegations were found to be improbable. Further, it is submitted that the applicant is a student and is of only 20 years of age. In support of the said submission he has placed on record the documents pertaining to his education background. He further submits that the number of applicant is also not saved in the phone of accused No.1, and therefore, it cannot be said that there is any link between accused No.1 and the present applicant. Therefore, he submits that, considering the fact that, at initial stage when the F.I.R. was registered, the name of the applicant does not appear and also in the statement recorded under Section 183 BNSS. Whereas, it only appears in the supplementary statement of the victim. Therefore, it is submitted that, the applicant has been falsely implicated in the crime. Thus, he prays to be released on bail. The learned counsel has relied on the following order/judgment:- (i) Order of this Court in Criminal Application [B.A.] No.1011/2026 in the case of Owasis Khan Ayyub Khan -Vrs.- State of Maharashtra; (ii) Order of this Court in Criminal Application [B.A.] No.803/2026 in the case of Piyush Mahajan 5 19-Cr.BA-981-2026 Vijay Shaligram Jadhao -Vrs.- The State of Maharashtra and Anr.; (iii) The judgment of the Supreme Court in the case of Ayub Khan -Vrs.- State of Rajasthan, (2024) SCC OnLine SC 3763 and relied on paragraph No.10, which reads thus: “10. The presence of the antecedents of the accused is only one of the several considerations for deciding the prayer for bail made by him. In a given case, if the accused makes out a strong prima facie case, depending upon the fact situation and period of incarceration, the presence of antecedents may not be a ground to deny bail. There may be a case where a Court can grant bail only on the grounds of long incarceration. The presence of antecedents may not be relevant in such a case. In a given case, the Court may grant default bail. Again, the antecedents of the accused are irrelevant in such a case. Thus, depending upon the peculiar facts, the Court can grant bail notwithstanding the existence of the antecedents. In such cases, the question of incorporating details of antecedents in a tabular form does not arise. If the directions in the case of Jugal Kishore are to be strictly implemented, the Court may have to adjourn the hearing of the bail applications to enable the prosecutor to submit the details in the prescribed tabular format.” (iv) The judgment of the High Court in the case of Avinash Ajay Benewal -Vrs.- State of Piyush Mahajan 6 19-Cr.BA-981-2026 Rajasthan, (2025) SCC OnLine Bom 191 and relied on paragraph Nos.14, 15, 16 and 17, which reads thus: “14. The Court held that the rationale behind a different regime being followed world over vis-a-vis young offenders is to prevent recidivism which can be prevented if young offenders are dealt with appropriately with due sensitivity at an early age. Court also referred to a range of different sentences qua young offenders depending upon gravity of offences and age of offenders. The Court held that while dealing with a young offender, every attempt should be made to ascertain whether the sentencing disposition could be tailored as long as it is consistent with other sentencing principles so as to promote reformation and lead to rehabilitation of the offender. The Court referred to the facet of the doctrine of proportionality often used by our Courts in such matters. 15. Before me is the case of a young offender and as held above his exclusion from the normal educational stream for a period of time brings about unplesent consequences and harm which in any case case amongst others is the purpose of any punishment. Undoubtedly in the present case, the Applicant before me has admitted this act as seen from the confessional statement. At this stage, I am not considering its evidentiary value. The confessional statement when read would show that the Petitioner is contrite. He is a young adult offender. He clearly falls in the category of a young adult who has crossed his age of Piyush Mahajan 7 19-Cr.BA-981-2026 juvenility but is less than 21 years of age at the time when the offence is committed. It is widely recognised that younger the age of the offender, the lesser is its culpability. Therefore having regard to the totality of the circumstances before me at this stage, on prima facie consideration I am inclined to consider the Applicant's case. 16. It should also be noted that in a case where an offender is undergoing studies, his exclusion from education for a period of time is an added layer of punishment over and above what a non-student accused may be subjected to. This is because a student undergoing incarceration suffers loss of precious academic time which cannot be bartered for any wealth in the world. He also constantly witnesses his peers moving ahead in life than compared to him and when the frustration becomes insurmountable such frustration can create an emotion of rebellion, which, coupled with the exposure to criminality in prison, can easily gain traction and push him to become a hardened criminal. 17. This Court can only make an attempt to positively impact the life of the person before it. It is on the belief that the Applicant, having once gained the confidence of Court, would make a sincere attempt to reform and rehabilitate himself. Considering the foregoing, I am of the opinion that the Applicant should be given a chance to make an attempt to demonstrate that he has reformed his conduct and is leading a law-abiding life with prospects of making a positive impact on society." Piyush Mahajan 8 19-Cr.BA-981-2026 5. On the other hand, the learned A.P.P. and the learned counsel for the victim vehemently opposed the application and submit that the modus operandi adopted by the accused persons is unique. They submit that, initially the accused persons used to send messages on Instagram and Snapchat to the minor victims, and thereafter, they used to make friendships with them, wherein the accused persons used to commit sexual intercourse with the different victims. They submit that in the town of Mul, it is not in dispute that the applicant is running the cafe, however, that cafe was allegedly used for an illegal purpose, i.e., for sexual harassment of the victims. There are total 4 crimes registered against the group who are sexually harassing the victims. They further submit that the same modus operandi was operating in the 4 crimes which are registered against the persons. So far as the present applicant is concerned, the applicant is also an accused in Crime No.310/2026, wherein the victim has made allegations against 3 accused persons including the present applicant. They further submit that the present crime is the second crime which was committed by the applicant using the same modus operandi. They further submit that the modus operandi can be gathered from the entire material that initially the accused persons used to send friend Piyush Mahajan 9 19-Cr.BA-981-2026 requests to the victims, and thereafter, they used to make friends, and thereafter, they used to take the victims with them, wherein they used to commit sexual intercourse with the victims, and also used to sexually harass them. They further submit that the nude photographs were also captured and sent to different accused persons, and accordingly, each accused person used to harass the victims. They further submit that the accused persons have not stopped there only, they have started extracting amounts from the victims in lakhs of rupees, which could be gathered from the F.I.R. registered against the applicant, i.e., in Crime No.310/2026. They further submit that the mobile phone of the applicant was seized in Crime No.310/2026, and was sent to Forensic Science Laboratory for the purpose of analysis. Under such circumstances, they submit that, upon consideration of the material to all the aforesaid crimes, it could be gathered that the applicant along with his associates had formed a gang and adopted a specific modus operandi to commit the offences. Therefore, the learned A.P.P. submits that the applicant does not deserve to be granted bail, though he is a student and 20 years of age. Piyush Mahajan 10 19-Cr.BA-981-2026 6. I have considered the rival submissions. I am conscious of the fact that the applicant is 20 years of age. It appears from the material placed on record that, so far as the present crime is concerned, the name of the applicant does not appear in the F.I.R. or in the statement recorded under Section 183 of the BNSS. Whereas, the victim has not disclosed anything before the doctor during her medical examination. After her medical examination it was recorded that her hymen was not intact and there was a presence of an active injury. The finding of medical officer are consistent with sexual assault/intercourse. Admittedly, the F.I.R. was registered on 11/04/2026 and immediately after 2 days, the supplementary statement was recorded, wherein she narrated about the incident. It appears that initially in the F.I.R., the name of accused No.1 was shown, and even in the supplementary statement, the name of accused No.1 was shown, who has taken undue advantage of the victim under the pretext of friendship. Initially, he has sent a friend request on Snapchat, and after making friendship with the victim, accused No.1 took objectionable video of the victim. It further appears that the said objectionable video was shown to his companions, and accordingly, they started adopting the same modus operandi thereafter they started blackmailing Piyush Mahajan 11 19-Cr.BA-981-2026 the victim. There are names of several accused persons in the statement and she has referred to the entire chronology of the events in the supplementary statement. So far as the allegations against the present applicant is concerned, victim has specifically stated that the applicant is the owner of the cafe. As she use to visit the said cafe, she knew the applicant. It appears that the applicant is on Snapchat and Instagram and he knows victim. It is specifically alleged that on 14/01/2026, the applicant made a video call to the victim and stated that the applicant has seen the video of her while doing sex with other persons, and therefore, he insisted that the victim should undress herself. If she was not agreeable, he would make the said video viral, and accordingly, threatened her. Therefore, as no option was left with the victim, she undressed herself. It is further alleged that on 26/01/2026 the applicant has sent a message to the victim and asked her to come to his cafe. Accordingly, the victim went to the cafe. Accordingly, the victim questioned why she had been called at the cafe. Thereafter, the applicant pulled down the shutter of the cafe and took the victim in the first compartment and thereafter committed forceful sexual intercourse. Piyush Mahajan 12 19-Cr.BA-981-2026 The allegations are serious in nature. It could be gathered further that total 4 offences are registered, wherein in all the F.I.R.s, identical nature of allegations are made and the same modus operandi has been used by the accused persons. This is the second F.I.R. against the applicant. Even in the first F.I.R. which was registered against the applicant, i.e., Crime No.310/2026, there were serious allegations and the same modus operandi was used. It is further to be noted that the applicant and the other co-accused persons have crossed all the limits. They have not only committed sexual intercourse with different victims, but also extracted a huge amount from the victims by blackmailing them. Therefore, the present F.I.R. cannot be considered in isolation, however, it is necessary to consider how this gang of young persons have trapped the victims, and committed sexual intercourse with them. Thereafter made objectionable videos for blackmailing the victims and also to extract a huge amount. It further appears that the mobile of the applicant was seized in Crime No.310/2026. Upon perusal of the papers regarding the seizure of the mobile, which were tendered by the learned A.P.P., it could be gathered that photographs of girls/victims were found in the said phone. Therefore, considering the seriousness of the allegations, though the Piyush Mahajan 13 19-Cr.BA-981-2026 applicant is 20 years of age, however, the present crime is not an ordinary crime. There are further 4 crimes registered against all the accused persons, wherein the accused persons are common. So far as accused No.1 is concerned, his name appears in all the F.I.R.s. One does not know how many victims have not approached the police. 7. Now, so far as the judgments/orders which are relied are concerned, those are related to release on bail of young offenders. The orders are passed on the basis of the facts and circumstances of those cases. Considering the seriousness and gravity of the present case, the observations in the above- referred cases would not be applicable. Hence, in my opinion, those orders/judgments are not helpful to the present applicant, and considering the modus operandi, I am not inclined to grant bail to the present applicant as there is sufficient material placed on record against him. Hence, the Criminal Application is rejected. Pending Misc. Application(s), if any, also stand disposed of. Fees of the appointed counsel be quantified and paid as per rules. [ M.M. NERLIKAR, J ] Piyush Mahajan Signed by: Piyush Ramesh Mahajan Designation: PA To Honourable Judge Date: 07/09/2026 19:12:40