Pramod Balu Londhe v. State Of Maharashtra And ANR.
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY CIRCUIT BENCH AT KOLHAPUR CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION CRIMINAL BAIL APPLN. NO. 284 OF 2026 Pramod Balu Londhe
VERSUS
State Of Maharashtra And Anr.
Mr. Ramnik P. Pawar a/w Mr. S V Mahamulkar, Mr. Amit Waykool Advocate for Applicant Mr. Nitin B. Patil APP for the State CORAM : SACHIN S. DESHMUKH, J.
DATE : 4th MAY 2026.
P. C. :
1.
The applicant seeks regular bail in connection with C.R. No. 429/2023 dated 14/05/2023 registered with Karad City Police Station, District Solapur for offences punishable under Sections 420, 406 read with 34 of the Indian Penal Code and under Sections 3 and 4 of the The Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors (in IRESH MASHAL Financial Establishments) Act, 1999 ('MPID Act'). Digitally signed by IRESH MASHAL Date:
2026.05.06 11:26:15 +0530 2.
Learned counsel for the Applicant submits that the applicant is falsely implicated in the crime. Investigation is complete and charge-sheet has been filed. The offence is purely civil in nature. The Applicant has never made any false representation to the informant, neither has received any sum of money in personal 1 of
capacity nor has misappropriated the same. The offences levelled against the Applicant are punishable for upto 7 years only while the Applicant has under undergone the period of incarceration of two years and four months. There are no criminal antecedents against the applicants. Hence, prayed to allow the Application. 3.
Learned APP has opposed the Application submitting that offence is serious in nature and the Applicant has misappropriated a huge sum of money. Further expressed the apprehension that if the Applicant is released on bail, there is a possibility of Applicant fleeing away and evading trial.
4.
Having heard the submissions from both the sides and upon perusal of the record indicates that the Applicant is in custody since his arrest on 09/10/2023 and has already undergone detention of almost two and half years.
5.
At this juncture, it would be apt to reproduce Section 479 (1) of the Bhartiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 which reads as under:
"479. Maximum period for which undertrial prisoner can be detained.
(1)Where a person has, during the period of 2 of
investigation, inquiry or trial under this Sanhita of an offence under any law (not being an offence for which the punishment of death or life imprisonment has been specified as one of the punishments under that law) undergone detention for a period extending up to one-half of the maximum period of imprisonment specified for that offence under that law, he shall be released by the Court on bail:
Provided that where such person is a first-time offender (who has never been convicted of any offence in the past) he shall be released on bond by the Court, if he has undergone detention for the period extending up to one-third of the maximum period of imprisonment specified for such offence under that law:
Provided further that the Court may, after hearing the Public Prosecutor and for reasons to be recorded by it in writing, order the continued detention of such person for a period longer than one-half of the said period or release him on bail bond instead of his bond:
........"
6.
In view of the aforesaid, the Applicant has already undergone a substantial period of sentence i.e. 1/3rd of the maximum 3 of
imprisonment for the offences levelled against him. The applicability of the provisions of the MPID Act can be adequately dealt into during the trial. The applicant has no criminal antecedents. Having regard to the number of witnesses which the prosecution proposes to examine, the trial is unlikely to conclude within a reasonable period. Thus, further incarceration of the Applicant may amount to pre-trial detention which is neither warranted nor justified. 7.
As far as the apprehension expressed by the learned APP is concerned, the same can be taken care of by imposing stringent conditions.
8.
Hence, following order:
O R D E R
I.
The bail application is allowed.
II.
Applicant, Pramod Balu Londhe be released on bail, on furnishing P.R. bond in the sum of Rs.50,000/- (Rs.Fifty Thousand) with one or two local solvent sureties, in the like amount, in connection with C.R. No. 429/2023 dated 14/05/2023 registered with Karad City Police Station, District Solapur for offences punishable under Sections 420, 406 read with 34 of the Indian Penal Code and under Sections 3 and 4 of the The Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors (in Financial Establishments) Act, 1999, on the following conditions :- 4 of
(a) The applicant shall not pressurize the prosecution witnesses and tamper with the prosecution evidence, in any manner.
(b) The applicant shall not leave the State of Maharashtra till the conclusion of the trial, without obtaining permission of the Trial Court.
(c) The applicant shall attend the trial on each and every date unless exempted by the trial Court. (d) The applicant shall submit Aadhar and Pan Cards to the Investigating Officer and detailed address and phone numbers and two of the near relatives.
(e) In case of breach of any of the conditions by the applicant, it is open for the Prosecution to move the concerned Court seeking cancellation of bail, notwithstanding the fact that this Court has granted bail to the Applicant.
9.
Needless to state that the observations rendered herein are to the extent of this application and the trial Court shall not be influenced by the same.
[SACHIN S. DESHMUKH, J.] 5 of