Dil Murad & Another vs The State
This matter concerns a bail application filed by two accused persons seeking confirmation of their pre-arrest bail in a criminal case involving charges of murder and assault. The core legal question was whether the applicants, who were specifically nominated in the First Information Report (FIR) for causing fatal injuries to the deceased, were entitled to the extraordinary concession of pre-arrest bail. The High Court held that the applicants were not entitled to such relief, noting that they were specifically attributed with causing fatal blows to the deceased, Fida Hussain Laghari, with an iron rod and a lathi, respectively. The Court reasoned that pre-arrest bail is reserved for cases where an accused is prima facie falsely implicated due to mala fide or ulterior motives, which was not established here. Consequently, the Court dismissed the application and recalled the ad-interim pre-arrest bail previously granted. The key principle laid down is that pre-arrest bail is an extraordinary remedy not available to accused persons who are specifically implicated with active roles in fatal injuries, absent evidence of mala fide or false implication.
- Is an accused specifically nominated in an FIR for causing fatal injuries entitled to pre-arrest bail?
- What is the threshold for granting pre-arrest bail in cases of serious criminal offences?
- Does the presence of specific allegations of fatal blows preclude the grant of pre-arrest bail?
ORDER
1. M UHAM M AD IQBAL KALHORO,J- On 14.10.2022 when complainant was present along with his peasant / hari Fida Hussain and other PWs on his land Chak No.36, deh Sidarat, Taluka Sanghar, applicants / accused duly armed with deadly weapons i.e. gun, iron rods and lathies on account of dispute over the said land accosted them; complainant party then threatened them to vacate the said land otherwise they would not be spared. After which co-accused Azam Masih instigated other co-accused to attack upon the complainant party, at his instance, applicant Shamshad Masih caused an iron rod blow on left side of head of peasant Fida Hussain Laghari and applicant Dilmurad Masih gave him a lathi blow on his left eye, whereas the other accused caused blows to PWs Nazeer Ahmed and tractor driver Zareef Marri on different parts of their body. The co-villagers intervened and thereafter accused party left the place of incident while making aerial firing. The injured Fida Hussain Laghari who had fallen down on the ground meanwhile expired. Police was duly intimated and after necessary formalities, on the next day, the matter was reported.
2. Learned counsel for the applicants has submitted that applicants are innocent and have been falsely implicated in this case ; they were not present at the spot when the incident occurred.
3. On the other hand, counsel for the complainant and learned A.P.G. have opposed bail stating that applicants are the main accused saddled with the role of causing death of Fida Hussain Laghari.
4. I have considered submissions of parties and perused material available on record. Applicants are nominated specifically in F.I.R. of causing fatal blows to deceased Fida Hussain Laghari. Applicant Shamshad was armed with iron rod and he gave a blow on head of deceased Fida Hussain, and applicant Dilmurad also gave him a lathi blow on his left eye causing his death. In view of the specific role, the applicants are not entitled to extraordinary concession of pre-arrest bail which is extendable only to those accused who are prima facie implicated in the case falsely on the basis of malafide or ulterior motive by the complainant or police. The case of the applicants / accused is totally different from such proposition. This being the position, I do not find merit in this application which is accordingly dismissed and ad-interim pre-arrest bail granted to the applicants vide order dated 19.01.2023 is hereby recalled.
5. The observations made hereinabove are tentative in nature and shall not cause prejudice to either party on merits before the trial Court.