jpc ba602-11.sxw 1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION CRIMINAL BAIL APPLICATION NO. 602 OF 2011 Chandrakala Ravishankar Gupta ... Applicants and another Versus The State of Maharashtra ... Respondent Mr. Rishi Bhuta i/by Mr. Mahesh R. Patil, for the applicant Mr. K. V. Saste, APP for the State CORAM:- A.M. THIPSAY, J. DATED :- 13th July, 2011. P.C. : 1. Heard Mr. Bhuta, the learned advocate for the applicant and Mr. Saste, the learned APP for the State. 2. I have gone through the first information report and glanced through the copy of the charge sheet that is annexed to the bail application. 3. The applicants are the accused nos. 2 and 3 respectively in C.R. No. 284 of 2010 of Malwani Police Station, which is in respect of the offences punishable under section 302 r/w section 34 of the Indian Penal Code. The first information report has been lodged by one Subhash Gupta-father of Radhika-deceased. The case of the first jpc ba602-11.sxw 2 informant against the applicants and others is, in brief, as follows: There were some disputes between Mohan- son of the first informant-(brother of the deceased) and his wife Ranjana i.e. the applicant no.2 herein. Radhika was taken by the father of Ranjana and co-accused Ravishankar Gupta- to their house, for some negotiations. Since certain suggestions of the family of Ravishankar Gupta were not accepted by Radhika, applicant No.2-Ranjana, co-accused Jitu held her hands and Ravi Shankar Gupta caught her neck. The co-accused Archana Gupta, at that time, put some poison contained in a tube, in the mouth of Radhika. Radhika managed to escape and went to Malad Police Station but the Police directed her to first go to the Hospital. Radhika got herself admitted in Bhagwati Hospital. This happened on 28th October, 2010. Radhika was discharged from Bhagwati Hospital on 31st October, 2011 and got herself admitted at Rahat Nursing Home, Malad. On 1st November, 2010 she died. 4. Mr. Bhuta, the learned advocate for the applicants submitted that so far as applicant No.1- Chandrakala is concerned, no specific role has been attracted to her in the F.I.R. or in the statements recorded during the investigation. He submits that being a woman and being in jpc ba602-11.sxw 3 custody since November, 2010, she deserves to be released on bail. Not much is stated by the learned APP about granting of bail to said Chandrakala. It seems that she is entitled to be released on bail. 5. Even as regards applicant no.2- Ranjana, it is contended by Mr. Bhuta that Radhika had not died because of the poison. He drew my attention to the opinion in that regard given by a doctor attached to Rahat Nursing Home, stating that Radhika died of 'cardiac arrest'. I have considered the matter from this angle. Report about the cause of death was given after the postmortem examination and the opinion was reserved pending C. A. Report. Later on, the C.A. Report was obtained and it does not reveal any poison. Interestingly, the final cause of death is given 'as death due to unknown and undetected poison'. One could understand if the poison is said to be unknown, but, when it is not detected, the inference that 'it has been caused some poison' seems to be rather surprising, even at this stage. 6. It also appears that the Doctor who examined the deceased in Bhagwati Hospital, had stated that the deceased was quite alright till 6 p.m. of 1/11/2011. The least, that can be said, is that there exists a doubt about the cause of death. 7. No poison or any tube or empty container in which it could be contained, was found or recovered in the course of investigation. jpc ba602-11.sxw 4 8. In these circumstances, I am inclined to release even the applicant No.2 on bail. 9. The application is allowed. 10. The applicants are ordered to be released on in the sum of Rs. 30,000/- (Rupees thirty thousand only) each, with one surety in like amount or two sureties in the sum of Rs.15,000/- each. (A.M. THIPSAY, J.)