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Synopsis

The Bombay High Court has recently denied bail to a rape accused while observing that the accused prima facie appeared to be obsessive.

A single-judge bench of the high court comprising Justice Manish Pitale was hearing a bail application filed by a man who was booked for rape under the Indian Penal Code on 16th May 2023 and was arrested on the same day.

The accused and the complainant-victim allegedly had a love affair. The accused submitted that the victim herself voluntarily accompanied him to a lodge on various dates and that therefore, it is clear that once the affair went wrong, she turned around and as a matter of counterblast initiated the criminal process.

Advocates Anagha Pedgonkar and Pooja Dongre appearing for the accused submitted that the WhatsApp chats, which were part of the chargesheet, included the pictures uploaded by the accused in the WhatsApp group. However, he submitted that the chats ought to be read in the context that the applicant was drunk and in an inebriated state.

The Additional Public Prosecutor, Kiran C Shinde, opposed the bail application and submitted that the chats in the WhatsApp group, placed on record along with the chargesheet, show the attitude and approach of the accused, which appears to be obsessive, and there is every possibility of the applicant causing harm to the victim if he is released on bail.

The high court, in its order, noted that the accused appeared to be aggressive and obsessive, particularly in light of the chats advanced.

“…considering the specific allegations made by the victim against the applicant and the approach of the applicant evident from the chats in the Whatsapp group placed on record along with the charge-sheet, the applicant prima facie appears to be of an obsessive nature. This Court has specifically perused the chats in the Whatsapp group that included the victim and her relatives, which indicate the aggressive and obsessive nature of the applicant, particularly in the light of the threats that he has advanced in such chats,” the order reads.

The high court, while denying bail, observed that the mere deletion of the photographs from the group cannot inure to the benefit of the accused, given that the nature of the accused appears aggressive and obsessive. It said that it was crucial in such cases where there is a serious apprehension of harm being caused to the victim if the applicant is released on bail.

Nonetheless, the bench directed the trial court to expedite the trial and, as far as possible, to complete the same within a period of one year.

Case title: Tejas Shankar Mali vs State of Maharashtra