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 CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO. 1077 OF 2009 CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO. 1077 OF 2009 CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO. 1077 OF 2009 Shri Pralhad Kashinath Mahale ...Applicant vs. The State of Maharashtra ...Respondent Mr.S.K. Shinde i/b. Mr.Sagar Kasar for the Applicant. Mr.S.S. Pednekar, APP for the State. CORAM : V.M. KANADE, J. CORAM : V.M. KANADE, J. CORAM : V.M. KANADE, J. DATED : MARCH 17, 2009 DATED : MARCH 17, 2009 DATED : MARCH 17, 2009 P.C. :- P.C. :- P.C. :- 1. Heard Counsel for the applicant and APP for the State. 2. The applicant has been arrested in connection with an offence punishable under Sections 498A, 302 read with 34 of the IPC registered vide C.R.No.67/2008 with Pimpalgaon Police Station, Nashik. Charge-sheet already has been filed. 3. Counsel for the applicant submitted that the other accused have been released on bail by this Court by order dated 12th January, 2009. He submitted that the applicant is the husband of the deceased. He has - 2 - invited my attention to the two dying declarations of the deceased which are recorded by the police. He submitted that there is obviously a discrepancy in the two dying declarations and several improvements had been made by the deceased in the second dying declaration. He also invited my attention to the statement of neighbours who had in term stated that they had seen the smoke coming out of the toilet and at that time, the present applicant came there and rescued the deceased and extinguished the fire and thereafter, she was taken to the hospital. In view of the discrepancy in the two dying declarations and also further discrepancy in the statement of the neighbours, it is doubtful whether the present applicant had actually poured kerosene on the deceased and had set her on fire when the other neighbours have stated in their evidence that the deceased had locked herself in the toilet and had set herself on fire and the present applicant had thereafter rescued her from the toilet and had taken her to the hospital. In view of these discrepancies, firstly, in the two dying declarations and the statements of neighbours, the applicant deserves to be released on - 3 - bail. The charge-sheet also has been filed. Continued detention of the applicant, under these circumstances, in my view, is not necessary, particularly, the trial is not likely to begin for quite some. 4. The applicant be released on bail in the sum of Rs.5000/- with one or two sureties in the like amount for the aforesaid offence. The applicant shall report to the concerned police station once in a month. The applicant shall not threaten any of the prosecution witnesses. 5. The application, accordingly, is disposed of in the aforesaid terms. (V.M. KANADE, J.) (V.M. KANADE, J.) (V.M. KANADE, J.)