Dil Bahaddur Singh vs Maharashtra Sarkar — 8/2026

Summary: The court allowed applicant Dil Bahadur Singh's petition for custody of a seized mobile phone and motorcycle under Sections 503 & 497 of the BNSS 2023. The court held that while Section 39(1)(d) of the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 allows forfeiture of property used in committing offences, this provision applies only after guilt is proved by a competent court, not merely on accusation or suspicion. Following the Bombay High Court's precedent in Sayyad Rasul Rustam's case, the court ruled that the presumption of innocence must be respected during investigation and granted custody upon a Rs. 60,000 bond with conditions that the applicant preserve the property and produce it as required. This case analysis is maintained by casestatus.in based on publicly available court records.