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2007 YLR 252

MANZOOR AHMED vs TAHIR MAHMOOD and another

Citation2007 YLR 252
CourtLahore High Court
Case No.Criminal Miscellaneous No,1408-BC of 2006
Date2006-07-14
Judge(s)Asif Saeed Khan Khosa
ResultPetition dismissed

ORDER

' ASIF SAEED KHAN KHOSA, J.---Through this petition Manzoor Ahmad petitioner-complainant has sought cancellation of pre-arrest bail allowed to respondent No,1 by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Mandi Bahauddin vide order dated 4-10-2005 passed in case F.I.R. No,374 registered at Police Station Qadirabad, District Mandi Bahauddin on 19-9-2005 in respect of an offence under section 18 of the Offence of Zina (Enforcement of Hudood) Ordinance, 1979.

2. It has been argued by the learned counsel for the petitioner that sufficient incriminating material was available on the record of investigation prima facie establishing respondent No,l's involvement in the alleged offence and therefore, the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Mandi Bahauddin was not justified in admitting respondent No,1 to pre-arrest bail. As against that the learned counsel for respondent No,1 as well as the learned counsel for the State have supported the order passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Mandi Bahauddin on 4-10-2005 and have maintained that there is no occasion for this Court to cancel respondent No,l's bail at such a stage.

3. After hearing the learned counsel for the parties and going through the record of this case with their assistance it has been observed by me that the F.I.R. In this case had been lodged with a delay of two months and ten days and apparently no plausible explanation for that delay had been advanced by the petitioner-complainant in the F.I.R. The order passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Mandi Bahauddin on 4-10-2005 shows that after lodging the F.I.R. The complainant had never joined the investigation of this case and the police officer present with the record has confirmed this factual aspect of the matter before me today. The above-mentioned order passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Mandi Bahauddin further shows that till the passage of the order dated 4-10-2005 admitting respondent No,1 to pre-arrest bail the alleged victim namely Mst. Fauzia had never made any statement before the investigating agency in connection with the present criminal case. This aspect of the matter has already been confirmed by the police officer present with the record and he has informed me that the alleged victim had got her statement recorded in connection with the present criminal case for the first time on 19-11- 2005, i.e, after about four and a half months of the alleged occurrence and after about one and a half months of admission of respondent No,1 to pre-arrest bail by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Mandi Bahauddin. The record of this case clearly shows that the petitioner-complainant has been advancing contradictory versions before different police authorities at different stages.

The record also shows that a criminal case had already been registered against the present petitioner-complainant at the instance of the accused party of the present case prior to lodging of the F.I.R. By him against respondent No,1 herein in the present case and in that backdrop the assertion of the learned counsel for respondent No,1 regarding mala fide implication of respondent No,1 in the present case appears to be an assertion which could well be true. The criminal case in hand is one of an attempt only which attempt had remained, abortive. Nothing is to be recovered from the possession of respondent No,1 and it is not disputed that he had joined the investigation of this case when the same was in progress. After completion of the investigation a challan has already been submitted before the learned trial Court. This Court is generally slow in cancelling an accused person's bail at such a stage of a criminal case. It may not be out of place to mention here that respondent No,1 had been admitted to pre-arrest bail in this case by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Mandi Bahauddin about nine months ago and during his arguments before this Court today the learned counsel for the petitioner-complainant has levelled no allegation regarding any misuse or abuse of the concession of bail by respondent No,l. It is trite that considerations for grant of bail and those for its cancellation are entirely different.

4. In the circumstances of this case mentioned above I have not felt persuaded to interfere with the exercise of jurisdiction and discretion in the matter by learned Additional Sessions Judge, Mandi Bahauddin and this petition is, therefore, dismissed.

Cited by 2 cases

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