1. Appeal against High Court order granting bail based on election duty without considering the nature of the offence or other relevant materials. (Para 2 )
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1999 Supreme(SC) 40
1999(7) Supreme 523
Supreme Court of India
(From Allahabad High Court)
G.B. Pattanaik & S.S.M. Quadri, JJ.
Naresh Pal Singh -Appellant
versus
Raj Karan & Anr. -Respondents
Criminal Appeal No. 45 of 1999
(Arising out of SLP (Crl.) No. 3773 of 1998)
Decided on 18-1-1999
Important Points
Important Point
An order of bail solely on ground that accused was on duty at relevant point of time without considering the nature of offence and without considering any other materials cannot be sustained.
An order of bail solely on ground that accused was on duty at relevant point of time without considering the nature of offence and without considering any other materials cannot be sustained.
Subject
Bail - Remand for Reconsideration
Act Referred
Headnote
Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 - Section 439(1)(a) - Bail-Appeal against bail order-Release order on ground that accused was on election duty at relevant point of time-Attention not focussed with regard to nature of offence or any other materials-Order on the face of it cannot be sustained-Matter remitted to High Court for reconsideration. (Para 2)
Legal Category Hierarchy
Table of Contents
2. Accused contends that the grant of bail should not be cancelled due to the long duration of release without any overt act or tampering with evidence. (Para 2 )
3. High Court failed to focus on the nature of the offence and relevant materials, rendering the bail order unsustainable despite the duration of the accused's release. (Para 2 )
4. A bail order cannot be sustained if the court grants relief without considering the nature of the offence and all relevant materials. (Para 2 )
5. Matter remitted to the High Court for reconsideration of the bail application, with the accused permitted to remain on bail until the fresh disposal. (Para 2 , 3 )
6. What makes a bail order unsustainable?
A bail order is unsustainable if the court grants relief based on a specific plea without considering the nature of the offence or other relevant materials. (Para 2 )
7. Does the lack of misuse of bail preclude the reconsideration of a bail order?
No; although the duration of bail and absence of tampering are vital considerations, they do not justify an order that ignored the nature of the offence and relevant materials. (Para 2 )
Order
Leave granted.
2. This appeal is directed against the order of the Allahabad High Court, releasing the accused Raj Karan on bail. The High Court appears to have accepted the plea of the accused that he was on election duty at the relevant point of time and, accordingly, has released him on bail. No attention has been focussed with regard to the nature of offence or any other materials. Such an order, on the face of it, cannot be sustained. Mr. Lalit, learned Senior Counsel appearing for the accused-respondent however submitted that the accused has been released on bail since April 1998 and more than eight months have elapsed in the meantime and there is no allegation of any further overt act or tampering with the prosecution evidence and, consequently, the grant of bail should not be cancelled. Though this is a vital consideration, yet the High Court having not focussed its attention on all the relevant materials and having released the accused Raj Karan on bail, we think it appropriate to remit the matter to the High Court for reconsideration. More so, when in Criminal Appeal No. 23 of 1999, we have remitted the question of reconsideration for the bail of accused Suresh Pal Singh, we make it clear, we are not expressing any opinion as to whether, in the facts and circumstances, accused Raj Karan should or should not be released on bail and we further direct that accused Raj Karan, who is already on bail, may be continued to be so until the disposal of his bail application afresh by the High Court, after taking into consideration all the relevant materials including that he is on bail for all this time.
3. The appeal is disposed of accordingly.
(C.R.) Appeal disposed of accordingly.
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