NEW DELHI: Expressing concern over courts denying bail in not very serious cases despite probe being completed, Supreme Court on Monday said it is unfortunate that relief is not being granted in such cases and the apex court has to intervene.
A bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan said that 20 years ago, bail plea in such cases did not even reach HCs. It is shocking that the apex court is adjudicating such cases and it is flooded with such petitions, it said.
Twenty years ago, bail cases did not even reach HCs: Supreme Court
SC has repeatedly flagged the issue and appealed to trial courts and HCs to be liberal in granting bail, particularly in not serious and petty offences. It had earlier expressed anguish over “intellectual dishonesty” by lower courts & HCs in continuously denying bail to accused in cases involving ordinary infractions, despite its various orders exhorting them to be liberal in granting bail when custody is not needed.
While granting bail to an accused who had been in custody for over two years in a cheating case, the bench said, “It is unfortunate that bail matters in cases triable by magistrate come to SC for bail… We are sorry to say that people are not getting bail… It is unfortunate”. SC noted that the bail plea of the accused was rejected by a trial court and Gujarat HC, despite probe in the case completed and a chargesheet filed.
Flagging the issue of SC being flooded by bail petitions as accused were coming to it for the relief, the bench said, “It is shocking that SC has to deal with such cases. Twenty years ago, such cases did not come to HCs but now it is SC, which is deciding such cases.”
Observing that in a democracy there was no place for a police state where probe agencies can arrest people unnecessarily and in a mechanical way, SC in 2022 put a curb on agencies from arresting people in cognisable offences punishable up to 7 years’ jail term, where custody is not needed, & had asked criminal courts to protect the liberty of people and be liberal in granting bail.
It held that the accused, who was not arrested during probe and had cooperated in the investigation, should not be taken into custody after chargesheet had been filed. It had also appealed to Centre to frame a new law to streamline the process of granting bail, saying there was “pressing need” for it, and ruled that regular bail application of an accused had to be decided normally within two weeks and anticipatory bail within six weeks.
“Courts tend to think that the possibility of a conviction being nearer to rarity, bail applications will have to be decided strictly, contrary to legal principles,” court had said.
