The Himachal Pradesh High Court, sitting in Shimla, has dismissed a pre-arrest bail plea filed by Pushpa Devi, a 50-year-old woman accused of confining and assaulting an 11-year-old Scheduled Caste boy. Justice Rakesh Kainthla, delivering the order on October 14, 2025, observed that the allegations clearly indicated a caste-based motive, making the petition untenable under the provisions of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.
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Background
The case stems from an FIR registered on September 20, 2025, at the Chirgaon Police Station in Shimla district. The complaint alleged that Pushpa Devi had locked a minor boy, Sikander, inside her cowshed after accusing him of “touching” her house - an act she claimed had made it “impure.” The woman allegedly demanded a goat for the “purification” of her home.
Investigators later added offences under Sections 3(2)(v) and 3(2)(va) of the SC/ST Act after discovering that the boy belonged to the Koli community, a Scheduled Caste. Witnesses, including Manju, Suresh Kumar, and Sarojini Devi, reportedly corroborated the boy’s confinement and beating. The accused even appeared on a local news channel admitting that she had locked the boy up until her demand was met.
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Court’s Observations
During the hearing, Additional Advocate General Jitender Sharma argued that Section 18 of the SC/ST Act expressly bars anticipatory bail in such cases. The petitioner’s counsel, advocate Suman Thakur, countered that the court could still grant bail if no prima facie offence under the Act was made out, citing the Supreme Court’s ruling in Prathvi Raj Chauhan v. Union of India (2020).
However, after examining the FIR and police records, Justice Kainthla found the allegations “prima facie indicative of a caste-based offence.” He noted that the act of assault and confinement was allegedly motivated by the child’s caste identity and the accused’s belief in untouchability.
“The accused confined the deceased in her cowshed and demanded a sacrificial goat for purification because he had touched her house,” the bench observed. “Since the beatings and threats arose from the caste of the victim, the offence appears to have been committed due to his caste.”
The court cited recent Supreme Court precedents, including Kiran v. Rajkumar Jivraj Jain (2025), affirming that the exclusion of anticipatory bail in atrocity cases serves to protect vulnerable communities from intimidation and retaliation.
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Decision
Holding that the allegations squarely attracted Section 3(2)(va) of the SC/ST Act, the court ruled that the plea for anticipatory bail was not maintainable. “The objection of the learned Additional Advocate General is upheld,” Justice Kainthla concluded, dismissing Pushpa Devi’s petition.
The judge clarified that the findings were limited to the bail stage and would not influence the trial’s merits. With this, the petition along with related applications was formally disposed of.
Case: Pushpa Devi vs State of Himachal Pradesh
Case No.: Cr.M.P.(M) No. 2385 of 2025
Petitioner: Pushpa Devi (50 years old, resident of Chirgaon, District Shimla)
Respondent: State of Himachal Pradesh
Date of Decision: October 14, 2025
