RANJAN KUMAR @ RANJAY KUMARversusTHE STATE OF BIHAR

                     IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
                                 CRIMINAL APPEAL (SJ) No.3271 of 2023
                 Arising Out of PS. Case No.-19 Year-2023 Thana- PIPRAKOTHI District- East Champaran
                 ======================================================
           1.     RANJAN KUMAR @ RANJAY KUMAR S/O KAPIL DEV RAI R/O
                  VILLAGE- SHITAL PATTI, PS. CHAKIA, DIST. EAST CHAMPARAN
           2.    KAPIL DEV RAI S/O LATE METHU RAI @ METHURA R/O VILLAGE-
                 SHITAL PATTI, PS. CHAKIA, DIST. EAST CHAMPARAN
           3.    SACHIDA PRASAD @ SUCHENDRA PRASAD YADAV S/O JITAN RAI
                 @ LATE JAT NARAYAN RAI R/O VILLAGE- ORAIYA, PS. DHAKA,
                 DIST. EAST CHAMPARAN, BIHAR
           4.    KAJAL KUMARI D/O DR. SACHIDA PRASAD @ SUCHENDRA
                 PRASAD YADAV R/O VILLAGE- ORAIYA, PS. DHAKA, DIST. EAST
                 CHAMPARAN, BIHAR
                                                           ... ... Appellant/s
                                        Versus
           1.    THE STATE OF BIHAR
           2.     PASPATI DEVI W/O NANDLAL RAI R/O VILLAGE- BALATOLA, PS.
                  PIPRA KOTHI, DIST. EAST CHAMPARAN, BIHAR
                                                           ... ... Respondent/s
                 ======================================================
                 Appearance :
                 For the Appellant/s    :        Mr. Prateek Tandon, Advocate
                 For the Respondent/s   :        Mr. Binay Krishna, Spl.P.P.
                 ======================================================
                 CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
                                       ORAL ORDER

6   21-01-2026                 1. Heard learned counsel for the appellants and learned

                   Special Public Prosecutor for the State.

                               2. This is an appeal under Section 14-A(2) of the

                   Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities)

                   Act, 1989 (hereinafter referred to as the “SC/ST Act”) against the

                   refusal of prayer for anticipatory bail vide order dated 07.06.2023

                   in A.B.P. No. 2134 of 2023 passed by the learned Special Judge,

                   SC/ST Act, East Champaran, Motihari in connection with Pipra

                   Kothi P.S. Case No. 19 of 2023 registered under Sections 341,

                   323, 354(B), 120(B), 311, 406, 420, 467, 468 and 504/34 of the
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          Indian Penal Code as well as Sections 3(i)(x)(r)(s) of the SC/ST

          Act.

                       3. Learned counsel appearing on behalf of the

          appellants submits that from perusal of the office report dated

          07.10.2025, it would manifest that the notice has been duly

          received by the son of the respondent no. 2.

                       4. Since the notice has been received by the son of the

          respondent no. 2, as such, the same is deemed to be validly served.

                       5. Despite valid service of notice, no one appears on

          behalf of the respondent no. 2 to contest the case.

                       6. Learned counsel appearing on behalf of the

          appellants submits that appellants no. 1, 3 and 4 have antecedent

          of three cases and appellant no. 2 is a person with clean antecedent

          but then all the cases arise from the same allegation for which the

          instant FIR has been instituted. It is further submitted that

          appellant no. 4 is a woman. It is next submitted that the informant

          alleges that Ranjan Kumar opened a fake organization, namely,

          Rural Women Development Service Centre Private Limited in the

          house of Sachindra Prasad Yadav and went from village to village

          forming a group in the name of women development and

          convinced the potential beneficiaries that if an amount of

          Rs.21,000/- per woman is paid then after three months she will get

          Rs.3,000/- in beneficiary account till the rest of her life. Further,
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          the accused persons collected Rs.21,000/- by adding twenty-

          twenty women and gave forged receipts. Further, after a lapse of

          three months when amount of Rs.3,000/- was not credited in the

          account of the beneficiaries, accordingly, an inquiry was made

          when it transpired that the accused persons including the

          appellants have cheated innocent women of Rs.27 lakhs. Further,

          the accused abused by taking caste name when confronted.

                       7. Learned counsel appearing on behalf of the

          appellants submits that appellants have been falsely implicated in

          the instant case by the informant. It is further submitted that no

          doubt an amount of Rs.27 lakhs was collected by the organization

          but then the business failed. It is next submitted that an amount of

          Rs.27 lakhs has already been returned to the beneficiaries as would

          manifest from Annexure-2 series to the memo of appeal at page

          29. It is also submitted that an agreement was entered in between

          the head of the women group, namely, Rani Devi and appellant no.

          1 along with Sanjay Kumar wherein Rani Devi has specifically

          stated that now no dues remains with the accused persons.

                       8. Learned Special Public Prosecutor vehemently

          opposes the prayer for anticipatory bail of the appellants and

          submits that no doubt the agreement is annexed but then from

          perusal of the agreement, it would manifest that the same is dated

          20.12.2021 when the FIR came to be instituted in the year 2023. It
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                     is further submitted that no agreement in between the accused

                     persons and the informant has been entered. It is thus submitted

                     that it may be a ploy. It is next submitted that one can well imagine

                     the plight of the poor rural women who were cheated at the

                     instance of the appellants under the garb of giving an amount of

                     Rs.3,000/- per month for the entire life if an amount of Rs.21,000/-

                     per woman was credited with the organization. It is reiterated and

                     submitted that innocent villagers have been cheated and the

                     investigation of the case is still continuing.

                                  10. Considering the submissions made by the learned

                     Spl.P.P. for the State, the Court is not inclined to extend the

                     privilege of anticipatory bail to the appellants.

                                  11. Hence, the prayer for anticipatory bail is rejected.


                                                                            (Satyavrat Verma, J)

Kundan/-

U     T