Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973: s. 438 – Anticipatory bail – Application under – Scope of – Held: Is limited to the cause of the concerned applicant, applying for grant of anticipatory bail in connection with offence already registered against him and apprehending his arrest in connection with such a case – Inquiry must be limited to the facts relevant and applicable to the concerned applicant who has come before the Court – No attempt should be made to inquire into matters pertaining to some third party much less beyond the scope of the complaint/FIR – High Court should exercise circumspection in dealing with the application only in respect of matters which are relevant to decide the application and not to over-state facts or other matters unrelated to the applicant before the Court – In the instant case, the order passed by the High Court keeping the application for anticipatory bail pending and issuing notice to third parties to appear before the Court, is impermissible – High Court exceeded its jurisdiction – Such a plea, if accepted, is fraught with the danger of allowing Sessions Court/High Court to transcend beyond the scope of application u/s. 438 – Thus, it was not open to the High Court in exercise of powers u/s. 438 to add third parties to the proceedings, who are neither necessary nor proper parties to the application.
As published in the Supreme Court Reports, Supreme Court of India. Text from the Indian Supreme Court Judgments open data set (Dattam Labs), CC BY 4.0.
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