Chhattisgarh HC Grants Anticipatory Bail To Coal Protester In Police-Attack Case, Citing Supreme Court Relief To Co-Accused

The applicant sought anticipatory bail under Section 482 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, in Crime No. 303/2025, registered at Police Station Tamnar under Sections 126(2), 296, 351(2), 109(1), 191(2), 191(3), 190, 132, 121(1) and 49 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.

The prosecution alleged that, during a protest and road blockade by villagers opposing a public hearing, a mob attacked police personnel and damaged and set fire to a government vehicle; the applicant was alleged to have participated in the incident.

The applicant denied committing any assault and relied on the Supreme Court’s grant of anticipatory bail to co-accused Rupesh Patel in connection with the same incident.

The State opposed the application, but acknowledged that there was no specific allegation that the applicant personally assaulted anyone.

Section 482 of the BNSS empowers the High Court to grant anticipatory bail where a person apprehends arrest.

The Court assessed the application by considering the case’s facts and circumstances, the nature of the allegations, and the co-accused’s grant of anticipatory bail by the Supreme Court.

The order identifies no further statutory test or precedent as the basis for its decision.

The Court considered the allegations and the parties’ submissions, including the State’s confirmation that there was no specific allegation of assault by the applicant.

It also took account of the Supreme Court’s grant of anticipatory bail to co-accused Rupesh Patel in relation to the same incident and the four crimes registered in connection with it.

Without expressing any view on the merits, the Court found these circumstances sufficient to grant the applicant anticipatory bail.

The applicant must remain available for interrogation, refrain from influencing persons acquainted with the facts, avoid conduct prejudicial to a fair and expeditious trial, and appear before the trial Court on every date fixed until disposal of the trial.