Thread by @barandbench

#BombayHighCourt will shortly begin hearing the transit bail plea of lawyer-activist Nikita Jacob apprehending arrest in the toolkit FIR registered by the Delhi Police in relation to the farmers protest.

@nikitajacob

Jacob’s plea is seeks transitory bail for a period of 4 weeks and protection from any coercive action pending this application.

barandbench.com/news/litigatio…

Hearing begins.

Adv Hiten Venegaokar appearing for the Delhi Police submits that he has preliminary objection to the transit bail plea.

Venegaokar submits that there is no provision for transit bail under CrPC. He states that under Art 226 of Constitution the High Courts have jurisdiction, but each state has its own jurisdiction.

Venegaokar submits that the offence has been registered in Delhi and no cause of action has arisen here.

Justice PD Naik submits that cause of action arises for anticipatory bail but this is a transit bail application.

Justice Naik: You only have to show how the transit bail application is not maintainable.

Section 6 of the crPc has division of courts based in territorial division and those limits maybe altered or divide by the State: Venegaokar

Venegaokar: Under Sec 438 of CrPc Your Lordships do not have the power for cases outside the jurisdiction of the Court for granting anticipatory bail.

Venegaokar cites judgments from the Supreme Court, full bench judgment of Patna High Court and Kolkata High Court.

Venegaokar: the place where the accused apprehends is not a ground for hearing the plea in this High Court.

Venegaokar: There is a detailed order in the Augustine Pinto matter which referred to all previous cases I have cited.

I am not on that. Today the field of 438, the only judgment that remains is the Sandeep Lahoria judgment of Supreme Court.

Venegaokar: Milords have to now keep Sandeep Lahoria in mind and it says that transit bail for any other case outside jurisdiction is not allowed. The court has expressed shock.

Sr Adv Mihir Desai appearing for Jacob submits that the Lahoria judgment was considered by the Justice Revati Mohite-Dere. Reads out that order.

Desai (from order) submits that territorial jurisdiction cannot be a ground while considering the transit bail.

Justice Naik: Before all of these judgments there is an old judgment of Justice Kantharia.

Desai: Yes milords I have it.

Desai: We are here for a limited purpose. They have Non-bailable warramt against her from Tis Hazari Court. They have raided her house and seized electronic devices.

Venegaokar: When they raided her house, they had interrogated her at her house and therein she stated that she will be present tomorrow. But the next day she wasn’t present at her house. The officers waited the whole day.

Justice Naik: on 11 Feb rhey have visited your residence?

Desai: They have taken my statement and my devices. They have interrogated me.

Desai: She is a practicing advocate of this court. She is an activist.
She was enthusiastic environmentalist.

Desai: According to them she was preparing the tool kit but then it did not contain any violent acts or anything pertaining to taking over the Red fort.

Desai: There are 50 odd people and she there is one from Khalistan.

Justice Naik: What are the charges?

Desai: sec 124A (sedition)

Desai: Kedarnath judgment says 124 cannot be invoked unless there is violence.

Desai: How is this young lawyer? An activist for farmers protest with no connection with Khalistan. And now she apprehends her arrest so she filed transit bail.

Justice Naik: How much time has she sought?

Desai: We have sought 4 weeks but I am not going to bargain.

Desai: What happened in Delhi and violence and limited protection is so my career is not affected.

Justice Naik: On the merits of the case is not to be gone into, as the concerned courts will look into it. But to understand the nature of the offence a little background is necessary.

Venegaokar: There were 400 people who were injured.

Desai: Milords this came out only because the a tweet by Greta Thunberg.

@GretaThunberg

Venegaokar: There were farmer protests and then a toolkit was created and it gave detailed step by step on what action needs to be taken.

It was created by two people and one of them was Khalistani.

Justice Naik: The merits are ultimately to be considered by the concerned court. But then are you opposing this application or not?

Venegaokar: I am opposing.
He proceeds to show the non-bailable warrant.

Venegaokar: When we went to her house, we investigated her house and interrogated her in her house because we knew she was a girl. After sunset we could not have interrogated her.

Venegaokar: We left with an understanding that she will be there and that we will come back next day at 10.30am.

Justice Naik: But then she thought she would be arrested.

Venegaokar: But then that apprehension should be there to anyone.

Justice Naik: Should we grant transit when a warrant has been issued?

Desai: Milords they do not need a warrant to arrest. This a cognizable, non-bailable offence.

Desai: Shantanu Muluk another accused apprehending arrest moved the Aurangabd Bench and he was granted transit.

Justice Naik: Alright I will pass order in this tomorrow.

In the meantime, you get the order of Justice Shinde and the Aurangabad Bench order.

Desai: In the meantime I may be protected from arrest.

Venegaokar: No prudent will take that step. In any case a woman will not be arrested after sunset.

Desai: ok, I will take the word of a prudent officer.

Justice Naik: Was the preliminary raised before Aurangabad Bench?

Desai: I am not aware. But I will get the order tomorrow.

Hearing concludes. Court will pronounce verdict tomorrow.

Breaking: [Farmers Protest Toolkit] Bombay High Court to pass order in Nikita Jacob transit bail plea tomorrow

#FarmersProtest #Toolkit
#NikitaJacob

barandbench.com/news/litigatio…

Breaking: [Farmers Protest Toolkit] Bombay High Court to pass order in Nikita Jacob transit bail plea tomorrow

#NikitaJacob #Toolkit #FarmersProtest @DelhiPolice #BombayHighCourt #GretaThunberg

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