Allahabad HC Grants Bail in GST Receipt Forgery Case as Accused was Not Named in FIR [Read Order]

In a recent ruling, the Allahabad High Court held that bail can be granted in a GST receipt forgery case when the accused was not named in the FIR and was later implicated based only on a co-accused’s statement.

Antu alias Umar filed a bail application after being arrested in a case under various sections of the BNS for allegedly preparing forged GST receipts. The applicant’s counsel argued that his client was not named in the FIR and was falsely implicated later during the investigation based on the statement of co-accused Danish, who claimed that the applicant was involved in preparing fake GST receipts.

The counsel argued that the alleged recovery of receipt books from the applicant was false and had no independent public witness to support it. The counsel further argued that the applicant had no prior criminal history, was a law-abiding citizen, and had been in jail since 26.05.2025, and if released, would not misuse his liberty and would cooperate with the trial.

The state counsel argued against the bail plea but could not dispute the facts presented by the applicant’s counsel.

The single-judge bench comprising Justice Arun Kumar Singh Deshwal observed that the accused was not named in the FIR and had no criminal history. The court observed that continued custody was not necessary for the investigation and that the applicant could be released on bail while ensuring he cooperated with the proceedings.

The court considered the nature of the allegations, the period of custody, and the evidence, and the applicant was entitled to bail with conditions ensuring his cooperation and preventing any interference with the investigation.

The court held that the applicant would be released on bail upon furnishing a personal bond with two sureties and imposed conditions requiring him to cooperate with the trial, not threaten or influence witnesses, attend the proceedings, and refrain from any criminal activity. The court directed that any breach of these conditions would be grounds for cancellation of bail and allowed the bail application.

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