Facts of the Case

Niraj Prakash Saxena and Himanshu Gupta separately filed Anticipatory Bail Application Nos.2628 and 2629 of 2023 before the Bombay High Court, apprehending arrest at the instance of the Principal Director General, Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI) and others. No facts about the underlying allegations are recorded in the order itself, as the applications were withdrawn at the outset of the hearing on 25.09.2023.

Issues Involved

  1. Whether the applicants should be granted anticipatory bail in connection with the DGGI proceedings against them.

Petitioner's Arguments

  • Counsel for the applicants, on instructions, sought leave to withdraw both anticipatory bail applications, with liberty to take out an appropriate proceeding at a later stage.

Respondent's Arguments

  • The Special Public Prosecutor for DGGI and the APP for the State were heard, but no substantive arguments on the merits of the bail applications are recorded, since the applications were withdrawn before merits were reached.

Court Order / Findings

  • The Bombay High Court granted leave to withdraw the applications, with liberty to the applicants to take out an appropriate proceeding as prayed for.
  • The applications were accordingly disposed of as withdrawn.
  • The Court expressly recorded that it had not entered into the merits of the matter.

Important Clarification

No view was taken by the Court on the applicants' entitlement to bail or on the strength of the GST Intelligence case against them — the order records only a withdrawal with liberty to file afresh, and should not be cited for any proposition on the merits of anticipatory bail in GST evasion matters.

Sections Involved

  • Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 — Section 438 (anticipatory bail)
  • Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 — provisions relating to offences and prosecution (referenced only as the basis of the underlying DGGI proceedings; not examined in this order)

Decision – In Favour of

Disposed of as withdrawn at the applicants' own request, with liberty to take out appropriate proceedings; the Court expressly did not decide the matter on merits, so there is no decision in favour of either side.

Case Details

High Court of Judicature at Bombay, Criminal Appellate Jurisdiction | Anticipatory Bail Application Nos.2628 and 2629 of 2023 | Coram: Hon'ble Mr. Justice N.J. Jamadar | Date: 25 September 2023.

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