2021 (4) TMI 917 - HC - GST

Court grants interim protection with conditions until February 3, 2021.

The Court granted interim protection to the petitioner until February 3, 2021, directing cooperation with the Investigating Police Officer and imposing ... Seeking pre-arrest bail of the accused-petitioner - fake E-way Bills - HELD THAT:- The petitioner is granted interim protection till a final decision is taken, on perusal of the materials in the case diary, till the date fixed, i.e., 03.02.2021. The accused-petitioner will appear before the Investigating Police Officer within a period of 7 (seven) days from today, and, in the event of his arrest, he shall be released on furnishing a bail bond of ₹ 20,000/- with one suitable surety of the like amount to the satisfaction of the arresting authority, on the conditions imposed - application allowed. List the matter on 3rd February, 2021. Issues:Application for pre-arrest bail under Section 438 of Cr.PC in connection with a case registered under Sections 420/468/471/34 of IPC based on allegations of fake E-way Bills for coal transportation.Analysis:The petitioner, Sri Faruk Alom @ Faruk Alam, sought pre-arrest bail, claiming the E-way Bills related to the coal in question were genuine. The petitioner's counsel submitted copies of E-way Bills and GSTR forms to support this claim. It was highlighted that out of the five trucks involved, the petitioner was only associated with one carrying coal. The petitioner asserted that he was managing the coal depot for M/S P.M. Enterprise, owned by Mostafijur Rahman, and had sent a single E-way Bill from his mobile. The genuineness of the E-way Bill was emphasized, with the Investigating Police Officer tasked to verify its authenticity.The Court granted interim protection to the petitioner until a final decision was made after examining the case diary by February 3, 2021. The petitioner was directed to cooperate with the Investigating Police Officer, appear within seven days, and furnish a bail bond of &8377;20,000 with a suitable surety upon arrest. Specific conditions were imposed, including not leaving the police station's jurisdiction without permission, not interfering with the investigation or evidence, refraining from influencing witnesses, and providing documents for verification.The Court ordered the case diary to be summoned and scheduled a further hearing for February 3, 2021. Additionally, a copy of the order was to be provided to the Additional Public Prosecutor promptly.