Subrat Kumar Palo vs State Of Andhra Pradesh

V. Srinivas, J

The Criminal Petition, under Section 438 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, is filed on behalf of the petitioner/ Accused to grant anticipatory bail in connection with Crime No.65 of 2024 of Vizianagaram Rural Police Station, Vizianagaram District.

A case has been registered against the petitioner and others for the offence punishable under Section 420 IPC.

Brief facts of the case are that, on 06.03.2024, the defacto-complainant lodged a complaint stating that the Life Line Agency, Vizianagaram, had published that they will provide job opportunities in Gulf countries. On believing such publication, the complainant along with other unemployed persons belonging to Odisha state, paid an amount of Rs.58,000/- each. But the accused neither provided any jobs nor provided any call letters. When the complainant approached the office of the accused, the said office was locked as the accused along with the management had absconded. A case was registered against the accused and others who are involved in the said transaction.

Heard Sri Kakumanu Joji Amrutha Raju, learned counsel for the petitioner/accused and Sri K.Anand Kumar, learned Assistant Public Prosecutor for the respondent-State. Perused the record.

Learned counsel for the petitioner/accused submits that there is no element of truth in any of the allegations mentioned in the complainant and that all the said allegations were invented for the purpose of implicating the petitioner in a false case.

Per contra learned Assistant Public Prosecutor submits that the on investigation they came to know that the petitioner/accused by name Subrath Kumar Palo contacted the proprietor of Sri Tour and Travel, cancelled 63 flight tickets, and vacated the office of Lifeline Travel Agency, Vizianagaram, by leaving the original passports of 53 job aspirants.

Learned Assistant Public Prosecutor further submits that the presence of the petitioner/accused is very much needed to Police to collect his specimen writings, his identity with the victims and recovery of the equipment used by the accused to edit the Tourist VISAs into Employee VISAs. He also submits that the cash receipts issued by the accused are yet to be forwarded to the Handwriting experts and a Test Identification Parade is to be conducted to get identity of the accused from the victims and hence, he prays to dismiss this petition.

On hearing both sides, the accusation leveled against the petitioner/accused is that the accused collected money from the complainant along with other victims on a misrepresentation of providing jobs in Gulf countries. He collected a total sum of Rs.19,81,700/- from 44 victims without providing any job opportunities in Gulf countries or providing any call letters. When the complainant along with other unemployed persons approached the said premises office of Life Line Agency to enquire about the same, the accused along with his management absconded from the said office premises leaving behind the original passports of the victims. Learned Assistant Public Prosecutor submits that the presence of the petitioner/accused is necessary as they have to forward the said cash receipts issued by the accused to the Handwriting experts and that investigation is in progress. As submitted by the learned Assistant Public Prosecutor, since the investigation is at nascent stage, in view of the nature and gravity of accusation that has been made against the petitioner/accused, this Court is not inclined to grant anticipatory bail to the petitioner/accused No.1 herein.

In the result, the petition is dismissed.

As a sequel, miscellaneous applications pending, if any, shall stand closed.