TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2026 (7) TMI 320
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....tion [Criminal Revision Case No. 751 of 2025] filed by the respondent no. 2, under Section 442 [erstwhile section 401 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973] of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 [BNSS]. The High Court, while allowing the revision petition, set aside the order dated 26th September, 2025 passed by the Principal Sessions Judge, Bhuvangiri [Sessions Judge] in Criminal Revision Petition No. 4 of 2025. The Sessions Judge, by the aforesaid order, had set aside an order dated 7th May, 2025 passed by the Principal Junior Civil Judge-cum-Principal Judicial Magistrate First Class, at Bhongir [Magistrate] disposing of the application of the respondent no.2 seeking return of his passport. 3. The facts relevant for a decis....
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....ereto, the respondent no. 2 left the country in 2017. In the interregnum, another FIR [FIR No. 320 of 2021] under Sections 443, 427, 420 and 506 IPC came to be registered against him. Thereafter, the said petition (Criminal Petition No.14462 of 2016) seeking quashing of criminal proceedings came to be withdrawn by the respondent no. 2 on 23rd August, 2023. On 19th April 2025, upon his return to India, the respondent no. 2 was arrested at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, Hyderabad. Upon release from custody, the respondent no.2 filed an application before the Magistrate seeking return of his passport which, as noted above, was disposed of by an order dated 7th May, 2025 but set aside by the Sessions Judge on 26th September, 2025 while....
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....ned senior counsel has submitted that the condition requiring deposit of the passport is imperative to secure the presence of the respondent no. 2 and to ensure unhindered continuation of the criminal proceedings. Accordingly, prayer is made by him for setting aside the impugned order as well as for restoring the order dated 26th September, 2025 of the Sessions Court. 5. Per contra, Mr. Niranjan Reddy, learned senior counsel for the respondent no. 2 has contended that imposition of a condition requiring surrender of his passport would amount to an unjustified curtailment of the fundamental right to travel abroad under Article 21 of the Constitution of India. Learned senior counsel has submitted that the respondent no. 2 suffered two brai....
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....eptember 2025, reversed the order of the Magistrate and directed the respondent no. 2 to deposit his passport, having regard to the prolonged pendency of the matter. The Sessions Court further recommended to the passport authorities that the movement of the respondent no. 2 be restricted in accordance with the provisions of the Passports Act, 1967 [Passports Act]. Assailing the aforesaid order, the respondent no. 2 preferred a revision petition before the High Court which has succeeded. The High Court, in exercise of its revisional jurisdiction, set aside the order of the Sessions Court and restored the order passed by the trial court. In addition thereto, the High Court also permitted the respondent no. 2 to travel to the USA after committ....
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....l process not only in the present case but also in other proceedings, cannot be simply brushed aside. Be that as it may, we need not examine this allegation in greater depth since we are of the considered view that the impugned order is unsustainable for the reason that follows. 9. The "exigencies of medical treatment to be undergone" by the respondent no.2 and that "he has appeared before the Magistrate Court on the last 12 occasions" coupled with his undertaking to return to India within 6 (six) months were considered good enough reasons by the High Court to interfere in the exercise of its revisional jurisdiction. Having regard to the trajectory of the proceedings right from the date the FIR was registered, the conduct of the responde....
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....iberty, but at the same time a balance has to be struck between the right to individual liberty and the interest of society. No right can be absolute, and reasonable restrictions can be placed on them. While it is true that one of the considerations in deciding whether to grant bail to an accused or not is whether he has been in jail for a long time, the court has also to take into consideration other facts and circumstances, such as the interest of the society. (emphasis ours) 11. Therefore, taking an overall view of the matter, we are of the considered opinion that the order dated 7th May, 2025 passed by the Magistrate was justified on facts and in the circumstances and did not require interdiction. The impugned order of the High Co....