New Delhi, Oct 8 A Delhi court on Thursday denied anticipatory bail to a man accused of instigating his brother and two friends to sexually assault his wife, saying that his "disregard for the law" was writ large in his conduct.
Additional Sessions Judge Pooja Talwar dismissed the anticipatory bail plea of Saurabh Dhingra, noting that coercive proceedings had already been initiated against him and the investigation was not complete.
In an order, the court said, "Disregard to law of applicant/ accused is writ large in his behaviour which is evident from the fact that there were several FIRs registered against him prior to the registration of this FIR, and two more FIRs have been registered subsequent thereto."
According to the prosecution, Saurabh Dhingra, his brother Jatin Dhingra and their two friends Jasmeet Singh alias Binny and Maninder Namdhari went outside the complainant's house in Hari Nagar around 1.30 and 2 am on May 7 and allegedly shouted and abused her.
The complainant alleged that on the instigation of Saurabh Dhingra and his brother, the two friends sexually assaulted her.
An FIR was registered at Hari Nagar police station on June 2 under various provisions of the BNS. During investigation, the complainant's statement before a magistrate led to additional provisions being invoked, including those relating to rape, assault or criminal force with intent to disrobe a woman and criminal intimidation.
The court said there were serious allegations of physical assault which had been verified by the investigating officer.
It also noted that several FIRs had been registered against Saurabh Dhingra before the present case and two more FIRs were registered subsequently.
"Disregard to law of applicant/ accused is writ large in his behaviour," the court observed.
The investigating officer told the court that Saurabh Dhingra had been served a notice to join the investigation but failed to comply. His anticipatory bail plea before the sessions court was dismissed in July, while his subsequent plea before the Delhi High Court was withdrawn.
The police thereafter obtained non-bailable warrants against him and initiated proceedings under BNSS Section 84 (proclamation for person absconding). A Look Out Circular was also opened to prevent him from leaving the country.
The court held that anticipatory bail was not warranted in the circumstances and dismissed the application, while clarifying that its observations would not affect the merits of the case.
