Anticipatory bail granted to identifying witness in land forgery case involving primarily civil disputes.

The applicant sought anticipatory bail regarding Crime No. 300/2025 involving allegations that the main accused, Pawan Agrawal, and others defrauded a complainant of Rs. 2,00,000/- as an advance for a land sale

It is alleged that the accused forged land records, falsely represented the owner as deceased, and the applicant signed documents as an identifying witness

The applicant contends he was not a party to the agreement, received no money, and that his signatures were forged

He further asserted that the main accused received protection from the Supreme Court and that his previous bail application was dismissed for default rather than on merits

1. Whether the applicant is entitled to the grant of anticipatory bail under Section 482 of the Bhartiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, in light of the allegations of forgery and cheating

Section 482 of the Bhartiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS), which governs the grant of anticipatory bail

Sections 420 (cheating), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating), 471 (using as genuine a forged document), 120(B) (criminal conspiracy), and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC)

The Court relied on established principles regarding the nature of the dispute, the absence of criminal antecedents, and the likelihood of the accused to cooperate with the investigation

The Court evaluated the "overall facts and circumstances," specifically noting the applicant's defense that the matter was primarily a civil dispute being given "criminal colour"

The Court took into account that the applicant was merely an identifying witness, not a direct party to the sale agreement, and had no criminal history

Significantly, the Court noted that the applicant claimed his signatures were forged and that he had already provided a statement on oath in support of the actual landowner

Given that the main accused already enjoyed protection from the Supreme Court and the applicant expressed a willingness to cooperate with the investigation, the Court determined that no purpose would be served by his arrest

The holding directed that in the event of arrest, the applicant shall be released upon executing a personal bond with one local surety

The relief was made subject to several conditions: the applicant must not influence witnesses, must appear before the trial court on all dates, must submit Aadhaar verification with a full-size photo, and must not commit any similar future offenses