Factual Matrix 

In the matter at hand Kuldeep Kumar v. State (NCT of Delhi) In a FIR lodged under Section 376 of the Penal Code, 1860 and Sections 4 and 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 a request was made to have the petitioner-accused released on normal bail. According to the petitioner, the prosecutrix got pregnant as a result of the accused’s alleged sexual contact with her under the pretence of marriage. The FIR was consequently filed against the defendants.

The accused in this instance has been in jail since August 14, 2022, and no incarceration questioning was necessary because the police had already filed a charge sheet and a supplemental charge sheet following their investigation. The trial was also not going to be over quickly, and keeping the defendant in jail would be pointless. Stringent conditions could be placed on the accused in order to meet the State’s concern that they could try to evade justice or sway the witnesses.

Analysis of Court Decision 

The prosecutrix’s statement pursuant to Section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 contained no allegations of any kind against the accused, and even the FSL report revealed that the DNA of the prosecutrix’s unborn child did not match that of the accused. This was noted by Justice Jasmeet Singh’s Single Judge Bench. As a result, the Court granted the application that requested the accused be freed on bond.

The Court directed that the following requirements must be met in order for the accused to be released on bail in the FIR filed according to Sections 4 and 6 of POCSO as well as Sections 376 of the IPC: The petitioner should not get in touch with the prosecutrix via WhatsApp, mobile, telephone, SMS, etc., or any other social media, nor would the accused or any members of his family be within a radius of 1 km of her or any of her family members. The accused should refrain from engaging in any unlawful or criminal behaviour or from doing anything that could jeopardise ongoing legal procedures. The accused or his family members would not make any effort to frighten the prosecutrix’s family with any witness testimony. The current application was dismissed by the court.