The power to suspend the sentence is not limited to cases where the convict is likely to suffer irreparable harm if the sentence is not suspended, but can also be exercised in cases where the convict needs to attend to urgent personal or family matters, such as the marriage of a daughter or the performance of last rites. The power to suspend the sentence can be exercised even if the convict's application for suspension of sentence has been rejected on merits. The power to suspend the sentence is inherent in the jurisdiction of the Appellate Court and can be exercised by taking resort to the doctrine of implied power.

(Per: Hon'ble Mr. Justice I.A. Ansari)

"Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them, humanity cannot survive". Dalai Lama

These applications, made under sub-section (1) of Section 389 Cr.P.C., seeking suspension of sentences, passed against the appellants-applicants, have raised some questions of great significance, the most important of all the these questions being whether it is permissible, in law, to temporarily suspend sentence of an appellant, pending disposal of his application seeking suspension of his sentence, and, upon such suspension, whether the Court can allow the appellant to go on bail temporarily until the time his application, seeking suspension of sentence, is decided either in his favour or against him. An equally important question is whether an appellant, whose application seeking suspension of sentences stands rejected, can apply for temporary suspension of his sentence, so as to enable him to perform some religious rites or ceremonies or to receive proper medical treatment, then requisite medical treatment is not possible to receive in prison, etc. Yet another question, not less important than the preceding ones, is whether enforcement of human rights or humanitarian considerations, as envisaged by Article 21 of the Constitution of India, can govern the outcome of an application, made by an appellant, seeking suspension of sentence pending decision in appeal or when an application seeking temporary, provisional or interim suspension of sentence is made.

2. Before we deal with the merit of each of the present applications seeking temporary suspension of sentences passed against the present appellants upon their conviction under various penal provisions, we are required to decide if it is within the powers of an Appellate Court, under Section 389(1) Cr.P.C., to suspend temporarily or provisionally sentence, for a specified period, when application, seeking suspension of sentences, has already been rejected on merit and if so, under what circumstances, exercise of such exceptional power would be permissible. We are also required to decide before dealing with individual merit of the applications - seeking suspension of sentences whether, during pendency of an application seeking suspension of sentence, an Appellate Court can, under Section 389(1) Cr.p.C., grant interim suspension of sentence and allow the appellant to go on bail until decision on the application seeking suspension of sentence and if so, when would such interim suspension of sentence be permissible.

3. Suspension conveys postponement or temporarily preventing a state of affairs from continuing. According to Black's Law Dictionary (Seventh Edition), the word "suspend" means, inter alia, to interrupt; postpone; defer. Black's Law Dictionary (Seventh Edition) describes word "suspension" to mean, inter alia, an act of temporarily delaying, interrupting or terminating something. Attributing the same meaning to the word "suspend" as pointed out above, New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998 Edition) describes suspend as temporarily preventing from continuing or being enforced or given effect or defer or delay an action, event or judgment.

4. Thus, when we speak of suspension of sentence after conviction, the idea is to defer or postpone execution of the sentence. The purpose of postponement of sentence cannot be achieved by detaining the convict in jail hence, as a natural consequence of postponement of execution, the convict may be enlarged on bail till further orders.

5. In fact, when a sentence is suspended, no fruitful purpose would be served by continuing to detain the convict, whose sentence, upon appeal being preferred against conviction, has been suspended by court. Conversely, if a convict is allowed to go on bail without suspending his sentence, the sentence of imprisonment would continue to run. For instance, if a convict is sentenced to imprisonment, simple or rigorous, for a period of one year and he is allowed to go