New Delhi, Sep 21 A Delhi court has granted bail to a 22-year-old Zomato delivery boy accused of entering a house by opening its lock with a duplicate key and stealing gold and silver jewellery, along with Rs 30,000 in cash.
Additional Sessions Judge Hargurvarinder Singh Jaggi was hearing the bail plea filed by Bunti Kumar Tanti, who was arrested in connection with a July 10 FIR registered at the Fatehpur Beri police station in south Delhi under various BNS provisions.
The order dated September 19 said, “The court cannot lose sight of the fact that the young and tender age of the applicant/accused and his being incarcerated with hardened criminals as a first-time offender would be harsh.”
According to the prosecution, the complainant had reported that an unidentified person entered her house in her absence after opening the lock with a duplicate key and stole a gold mangalsutra, a gold diamond ring, a pair of gold earrings, six pairs of silver anklets and Rs 30,000 in cash.
The police relied on CCTV camera footage, which showed a person wearing a helmet, black shirt and blue jeans arriving at the house, opening the main door with a duplicate key and committing the burglary.
The footage also showed the person unsuccessfully trying to open the door of an adjacent flat using the same method.
During the investigation, police traced the movement of a motorcycle allegedly used in the crime. The motorcycle was registered in the name of Tanti's father, which led to his identification and arrest, the court noted.
Opposing the bail, the investigating officer said the CCTV camera footage and motorcycle tracking directly linked Tanti to the crime. The prosecution also apprehended that Tanti could abscond, influence witnesses or tamper with evidence if released.
Tanti's counsel argued that there was no eyewitness to the theft and no stolen jewellery or weapon had been recovered from his possession. The court was also told that he was the sole earning member of his family, comprising his wife and their two-year-old child.
The judge noted that this was Tanti's second bail application and that his first plea had been dismissed in July.
The case was registered under BNS sections 305 (theft in a dwelling house or transport), 331(3) (lurking house-trespass or house-breaking), 317(2) (dishonestly receiving stolen property) and 238 (causing disappearance of evidence or giving false information).
The court said a significant change since the rejection of the earlier plea was that the stolen articles had been recovered and the investigation had been completed.
The court granted Tanti regular bail on furnishing a personal bond of Rs 15,000 with one surety of the same amount and imposed conditions, including that he join the investigation when called and not contact prosecution witnesses or tamper with evidence.
