IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION CRI.APPLICATION NO. 3996 OF 2008 CRI.APPLICATION NO. 3996 OF 2008 CRI.APPLICATION NO. 3996 OF 2008 Shri Sagar Ramchandra Patil, .. Applicant Vs State of Maharashtra, .. Respondent. Mr O.A.Siddiqui, for the applicant. Mrs P.P.Shinde, APP, for the respondent. CORAM : D.B.BHOSALE,J. CORAM : D.B.BHOSALE,J. CORAM : D.B.BHOSALE,J. DATE : 15/12/2008 DATE : 15/12/2008 DATE : 15/12/2008 PC: PC: PC: 1. Heard Mr.Siddiqui, learned counsel for the applicant and Mrs Shinde, learned APP, for the State. 2. The applicant is seeking bail in C.R.No.I-253 of 2008 of Sarkarwada police station. The said crime has been registered against the applicant and others for having allegedly committed an offence punishable under sections 465,467, 468,471 of IPC and Sections 3 & 25 of the Arms Act. 3. It appears that one Vikrant Ramesh Chandwadkar was running Viraj Armory shop selling arms. The record, which the accused-Vikrant had maintained, showed that fake licences were prepared from the office of Addl.District Magistrate, Ramban in Jammu and Kashmir. In fact, these licenses were prepared from different districts in Jammu and Kashmir and the same were used for purchase of arms, which were as many as 87 in number. The persons, who prepared fake licenses, were from Addl.District Magistrate, Ramban in Jammu and Kashmir, namely, Guljar Ahmad Khan and Joginder Kumar Mehra r/o Gandhinagar, Jammu. Those licences were prepared by these two persons and issued to the persons, who would approach them and who were intending to purchase arms from different places in India. Nashik was one such place where fake licences were used and arms were purchased from accused Vikrant Chandwadkar from his Viraj Armory. It is against this backdrop, offence has been registered against several accused persons. In connection with the said offence one Sachin Beldare came to be arrested for possessing rifle having fake licence issued by Addl.District Magistrate, Ramban. During the course of investigation of the said crime, it was revealed that from the office of Addl.District Magistrate, Ranban that out of 87 licences, 37 licences were found to be genuine, and 40 licences were not available with them and other ten licences are yet to be verified. On the basis of the report of the Addl.District Magistrate, it was revealed that the said licences were used for purchasing arms and the said arms were purchased from Viraj Armory, Nashik. 4. During investigation, it was revealed that one of the fake licences belongs to the present applicant, who had purchased the rifle from Viraj Armory, Nashik. The police have seized the licence and the rifle under panchanama and they have arrested the applicant on 2.10.2008.In the reply affidavit filed by the state they have stated that the investigation is at crucial stage and the investigating agency is verifying and ascertaining whether the licence found in possession of the applicant is fake. Ms Shinde, learned APP, across the bar, on instructions, submits that they have yet not verified whether the licence found in possession of the applicant was genuine. The applicant is an ex-serviceman. He took voluntary retirement, after 18 years of service, in 2000. He obtained the licence in question in July, 1998 when he was in service. He also got it renewed once in the year 2004. At the time of his arrest he was working as security guard at Saraswat Bank, Nashik. Considering overall facts and circumstances of the case and the fact that the applicant obtained the licence while in service and that it was renewed in 2004 by the concerned authority, I am inclined to enlarge him on bail. Hence, the following order. . The applicant to be released on bail in the sum of Rs.25,000/- with one or two sureties to make up the said amount, subject to condition that the applicant shall report to the concerned police station every Saturday between 7 and 8 pm for a period of six months. . While passing this order I shall not be understood to have expressed any opinion on merits of the case and the trial Court shall deal with the case without being influenced by the observations made in this order. (D.B.BHOSALE, J.) (D.B.BHOSALE, J.) (D.B.BHOSALE, J.)