1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO. 5449 OF 2009 Deen Mohammed Nuruddin Qureshi .... Applicant. V/s The State of Maharashtra ..... Respondent. Mrs. M.A. Ingale i/b Mr. Rajesh Jadhav for the applicant. Mr. J.P. Kharge, APP for the State. CORAM: V. M. KANADE, J. DATE : 7TH DECEMBER, 2009 P.C.: 1. Heard the learned Counsel for the applicant and the learned APP for the State. 2. Applicant is an Editor of Hindi Daily. It is alleged by the complainant that one person by name Mohammed Fizal had demanded Rs 50,000/- from him and had informed him that he is a report of Hindi Daily of which applicant is the Editor and had further threatened the complainant and other shop- keepers that if they do not pay Rs 50,000/-, he would publish a false news in the news-paper and there shops would be closed. This complaint was lodged on 10/11/2009. It is alleged that the said reporter who was working in the applicant’s news-paper had given threat on 30/10/2009. 2 3. The learned Counsel for the applicant submitted that the applicant, immediately on 01/11/2009, had published a news item informing the people at large that the said reporter Mohammed Fizal had been removed and no person should make any payment to him or to the other reporter Ravindra Kamble who was also removed. It is submitted that the applicant had also written letter to the Senior Inspector of Police on 13/11/2009 informing the Police Inspector that the said two reports had been removed and that they had misused the identity cards of the press of the applicant. It is therefore submitted that the applicant is not in any way concerned with the said demand made by the said Mohammed Fizal. 4. In my view, prima facie case is made out by the applicant for grant of anticipatory bail. The complainant in his complaint nowhere stated that the applicant had made any such demand. The demand was made by the accused – Mohammed Fizal and, in the complaint, it is mentioned that he had threatened that if the shop owners do not pay the amount, he would publish false news. Applicant promptly removed the said two employees and also published a news in his news-paper on the next date. Out of the amount of Rs 5000/- which was paid by the said shop-keeper, an amount of Rs 3000/- has been recovered from the said Mr. Mohammed Fizal. Applicant is, therefore, entitled to anticipatory bail. 3 5. Applicant, in the event of his arrest in connection with C.R. No.415 of 2009 registered with Shivaji Nagar Police Station for the offence punishable under sections 384 read with section 34 of the Indian Penal Code, be released on bail in the sum of Rs 5000/- with one or two sureties in the like amount. He shall report to the concerned Police Station after 10th of this month as and when called. 6. Application is disposed of. (V.M. KANADE, J.)