Rehmat Ullah etc. vs The State.
This petition for post-arrest bail concerns two petitioners, Rehmat Ullah and Khalid, who were charged under Sections 337A(i), 337A(ii), 337F(iii), 337F(v), 147, 149, and 34 of the Pakistan Penal Code 1860, following an FIR alleging they inflicted injuries with Sotas. The core legal question was whether the petitioners were entitled to bail given the nature of the offenses and the statutory provisions regarding punishment for hurt. The Court held that the injuries attributed to the petitioners fell under Section 337-F(v) of the Pakistan Penal Code 1860, which carries a maximum punishment of five years and thus does not fall within the prohibitory clause of Section 497 of the Code of Criminal Procedure 1898. Furthermore, the Court noted that under Section 337-N(2) of the Pakistan Penal Code 1860, imprisonment is optional and typically reserved for habitual or dangerous criminals, which did not apply here. Consequently, the Court granted bail, emphasizing that the petitioners were no longer required for investigation and that incarceration would serve no useful purpose.
- Does an offense punishable by five years of imprisonment fall within the prohibitory clause of Section 497 of the Code of Criminal Procedure 1898?
- Under what circumstances can the optional additional punishment of imprisonment be awarded for hurt offenses under the Pakistan Penal Code 1860?
- Does the submission of a challan in court automatically disentitle an accused person from the grant of bail?
- Section 497, Code of Criminal Procedure 1898
- Section 337A(i), Pakistan Penal Code 1860
- Section 337A(ii), Pakistan Penal Code 1860
- Section 337F(iii), Pakistan Penal Code 1860
- Section 337F(v), Pakistan Penal Code 1860
- Section 147, Pakistan Penal Code 1860
- Section 149, Pakistan Penal Code 1860
- Section 34, Pakistan Penal Code 1860
- Section 337-N(2), Pakistan Penal Code 1860
Through this petition under Section 497 Cr.P.C. The petitioners Rehmat Ullah son of Qadir Bakhsh and Khalid son of Ashraf have sought bail after arrest in case FIR No.67/15 dated 14.02.2015 under Section 337Ai), 337A(ii), 337F(iii), 337F(v), 147, 149 , 34 PPC Police Station Saddar District Sargodha.
2. Briefly stated the allegations against the petitioners as per FIR are that petitioner No.1 Rehmat Ullah while armed with Sota hit Noor Muhammad, injured (father of the complainant), on his left arm. And petitioner No.2 Khalid while armed with Sota inflicted a blow on the right arm of Noor Muhammad, injured (father of the complainant).
3. Arguments heard. Record perused.
4. The injuries attributed to both the petitioners were declared under Section 337-F(v) PPC, the punishment whereof is five years, which does not fall within the prohibitory clause of Section 497 Cr.P.C. As per the Police Official present in Court, four co-accused namely Muhammad Ashraf, Muhammad Qasim, Muhammad Riaz and Safdar have been granted bail by the learned Addl.
Sessions Judge, Sargodha. "Provision of Section 337-N(2) contemplates that in all cases of hurt the normal punishment to be awarded to an offender is payment of Arsh or Daman and the optional additional punishment of imprisonment provided for the relevant offence can be awarded to an offender only where the offender is a previous convict, habitual or hardened, desperate or dangerous criminal." Reliance is placed on Ali Muhammad Vs. The State (PLD 2009 Lahore 312).
There is no other case registered against the present petitioners. The petitioners are behind the bars since the day of their arrest, as they are no more needed in police investigation, hence their incarceration will serve no useful purpose. Though the challan has been submitted in the Court but this is no ground to disentitle the petitioners for grant of bail. Reliance is placed upon "Mst.Maria Khan Vs. The State and another (2013 SCMR 49)." In the countries following the Common Law, the principle that a person is innocent till proven guilty is strictly applied.
5. In view of the above, this petition is allowed and the petitioners are granted bail after arrest subject to their furnishing bail bonds in the sum of Rs.1,00,000/- each with one surety each in the like amount to the satisfaction of the learned Trial Court.
6. The observations made hereinabove are tentative in nature and are strictly confined to the decision of this bail petition only.