The Allahabad High Court on June 3 granted bail to Ramavati Awasthi, a 63-year-old woman accused of fraud in a firm in Kanpur.
Hearing her bail application, Justice Syed Aftab Husain Rizvi said that she is an elderly woman of 63 years and a heart patient and is partner in a firm in which all transactions are done by the other partner while granting her bail.
The applicant’s counsel submitted that his client has been in jail since August 19, 2015. The allegations in the FIR are mainly against co-accused Sumit Awasthi and the applicant has been involved in this case with the allegation that she is also a partner in the firm Bio Mask Research and Technical Solution where the fraud has been committed.
It has been submitted that the applicant is not concerned with the offence alleged in the FIR, complainant and his associates have unnecessarily roped her in this case as well as several other identical cases by lodging various FIRs and the applicant has been enlarged on bail in 23 cases out of 25 cases. Copies of some bail orders were also annexed with the affidavit including one passed by the Supreme Court.
Counsel for the applicant said that the applicant is a senior citizen and deserves to be enlarged on bail and there is no likelihood of applicant’s fleeing from course of justice or tampering with the evidence in the case once she is released on bail or involving in any criminal case in the future.
In this case, the FIR was lodged against the applicant Ramavati Awasthi under Sections 406, 420, 120B P.S.- Barra District- Kanpur Nagar.
The AGA opposed the bail application and submitted that the applicant has cheated the Company of the informant and is beneficiary of the alleged fraud. Several FIRs have been lodged against her and she is not entitled to be enlarged on bail as she is one of the partner in the fictitious firm along with Sumit Awasthi, the co-accused.
“Keeping in view the nature of the offence, evidence, complicity of the accused, severity of punishment and considering the rival submissions of the counsel for the parties, without commenting any opinion on merits of the case, I am of the view that the applicant has made out a case for bail,” the Court observed and allowed the petitioner to be released on bail.
The court ordered that “Let the applicant – Smt. Ramawati Awasthi involved in Case under Sections 406, 420, 120B P.S.- Barra District- Kanpur Nagar released on bail on furnishing a personal bond and two sureties of the like amount to the satisfaction of the court concerned. ” The Court directed the accused to not to tamper with the evidence and not to threaten, intimidate or pressurize any witness and to be present in the court on every date fixed by the court.
“In breach of any condition enumerated above, Trial Court shall be at liberty to treat it as abuse of liberty of bail and pass appropriate orders in accordance with law,” the Court ordered.