The Karnataka High Court on Thursday cancelled the anticipatory bail granted to Vachanananda Swamiji, Jagadguru of the Panchamasali Peetha in Harihar, in a case involving allegations under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
Allowing a petition filed by the victim challenging the grant of anticipatory bail, Justice M Nagaprasanna held that the manner in which pre-arrest bail had been granted warranted interference.
“The manner in which the pre-arrest bail is granted is what troubles this Court as one week prior to the registration of the complaint itself, a bail is granted in offences punishable under Sections 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 of the POCSO Act. Therefore, owing to the offence and the manner in which it is granted, is what leads to obliteration of the subject order, and not the mere fact of filing of the charge sheet."
The Court clarified that the filing of a charge sheet by itself does not extinguish an order granting anticipatory bail.
“In that light, I deem it appropriate to obliterate this order and reserve liberty to the petitioner to knock at the doors of the appropriate court to seek regular bail,” the judge said.
However, the Court extended protection from arrest for three weeks to enable him to approach the competent court and seek regular bail.
The Bench further observed that the victim had not been heard before anticipatory bail was granted, which itself constituted an additional ground to set aside the order.
“The very fact that the victim has not been heard in a case concerning POCSO would also be a ground for obliteration of the order granting bail,” the Court said.
During the hearing, counsel for the victim argued that a “pre-FIR anticipatory blanket order” had been passed even before registration of the case.
Counsel for the Swamiji sought extension of protection for four weeks to enable him to move an application for regular bail.
The Bench orally remarked,
“Till you take bail you don’t utter any vachana…Name is Vachananda only, be quiet. Why do you threaten the witness? This (anticipatory bail) order on the face of it could not have been granted."
A special court in Davanagere had granted anticipatory bail to Vachanananda Swamiji on May 2, taking note of social media posts by a mutt trustee suggesting that attempts were being made to falsely implicate him amid an administrative dispute within the Peetha.
According to the Swamiji's plea before the special court, the Veerashaiva Lingayatha Panchamasali Peetha was established in 2008. Following the death of Dr Mahanta Shivacharya Swamiji in 2012, internal disputes arose regarding its administration. Swamiji claimed that after taking charge as Jagadguru, he began raising allegations of financial irregularities against trustees, resulting in hostility and attempts to remove him from the Peetha.
He further alleged that trustees had threatened through media interactions to foist a POCSO case against him by instigating parents of children staying at the mutt to lodge complaints. He also claimed that his involvement in the Panchamasali reservation movement had led to political hostility.