High Court of Punjab and HaryanaCRM-M/15321/2026allowed

Sanpreet Kaur @ China v. State Of Punjab

2026-05-18Mr. Justice Sumeet Goel3 pages

CRM-M No.15321 of 2026 -1IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH 211/3 ***** CRM-M No.15321 of 2026 Date of decision : 18.5.2026 Date of uploading : 19.5.2026 Sanpreet Kaur alias China .............Petitioner

Versus

State of Punjab .......Respondent CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SUMEET GOEL Present: Mr. Rishu Garg, Advocate, for the petitioner Mr. Jaypreet Singh, DAG, Punjab Mr. Puneet Sharma, Advocate, for the complainant --- SUMEET GOEL, J. (ORAL) 1.

On 20.3.2026, the following order was passed: 'Apprehending her arrest in FIR No.51 dated 25.02.2026 registered for offences punishable under Section 108 of BNS 2023 at Police Station Bhikhi, District Mansa; the petitioner has preferred this petition under Section 482 of Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 seeking prearrest bail. Counsel for the petitioner, inter alia, contends that the petitioner is the sister-in-law of the deceased, the FIR in question essentially emanates from a matrimonial wrangling, the offence under Section 108 of BNS (erstwhile Section 306 of IPC) is not made out from the factual matrix of the case in hand, no effective recovery is to be made from the petitioner, the petitioner is a married lady aged 32 years with no criminal antecedents & is willing to join investigation and cooperate therein as per law. In order to buttress his arguments, learned counsel for the petitioner has relied upon the dicta of the judgments of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Mohit Singhal & Anr. Vs. The CRM-M-State of Uttarkhand & Ors.,

CRM-M No.15321 of 2026 -22024 (1) SCC 417 and Abhinav Mohan Delkar Vs. The State of Maharashtra and others, 2025 AIR SC 3823.

Notice of motion.

On the strength of advance notice; Mr. Adhiraj Singh, AAG, Punjab has entered appearance on behalf of the respondent-State of Punjab. Mr. Puneet Sharma, Advocate has entered appearance on behalf of the complainant and filed his power of attorney.

Adjourned to 28.04.2026.

The petitioner is directed to appear before the Investigating Officer on 25.03.2026 at 11:00 A.M. in concerned Police Station and join investigation. In the event of arrest, the petitioner shall be released on interim bail subject to her furnishing personal/surety bond(s) to the satisfaction of the Arresting Officer/Investigating Officer. As and when further called by Investigating Officer, the petitioner shall join the investigation. She shall abide by the condition(s) enumerated under Section 482(2) of Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023.' 2.

Learned State counsel (on instructions) submits that pursuant to the order dated 20.3.2026, the petitioner has joined investigation and is not required for further custodial interrogation. 3.

Learned counsel for the complainant has vehemently opposed the anticipatory bail of the petitioner by arguing that there are direct and serious allegations against the petitioner and in case he has extended the concession of anticipatory bail, there is all the likelihood that he may flee from the hands of justice and may influence the prosecution witnesses/evidence.

Having heard learned counsel for the parties and upon perusal of the record, especially keeping in view the factum that the petitioner has joined investigation and his custodial interrogation is not sought by the State; this Court is inclined to confirm the order dated 20.3.2026. 5.

In view of the above, the instant petition is allowed. The interim

CRM-M No.15321 of 2026 -3order dated 20.3.2026, passed by this Court is hereby confirmed, subject to the conditions as enumerated under Section 482(2) of BNSS. 6.

This order should not be treated as "blanket" order. It will not be read granting petitioner indefinite protection from arrest. It shall be confined to the FIR mentioned ibid and will not operate in respect of any other incident that involves commission of an offence. 7.

Liberty is reserved in favour of State/complainant to move for cancellation/recall of this order in case the petitioner violates any condition stipulated under Section 482(2) of BNSS or upon showing any other sufficient cause.

Needless to say that anything observed herein above shall not be construed to be an opinion on the merits of the case. (SUMEET GOEL) JUDGE 18.5.2026 Ashwanii Whether speaking/reasoned:

Yes/No Whether reportable:

Yes/No