Bail is the rule and jail is the exception; the presumption of innocence and circumstances of each case govern bail decisions.

JUDGMENT

Mr. Kuldeep Tiwari, J. (Oral)

Through the instant petition, the petitioner craves for indulgence of this Court for his being enlarged on regular bail, in case FIR No.208 dated 17.12.2023, under Sections 379A, 34, 411 and 473 of IPC, 1860, but against the petitioner challan has been presented only under Sections 379A and 34 of IPC, registered at Police Station South Sector 34, Chandigarh.

Allegations Against The Petitioner

2. The allegations against the present petitioner are that he along with his co-accused Manpreet Singh, who was driving the motorcycle snatched the mobile phone of the complainant.

Submissions of Learned Counsel For The Petitioner

3. The learned counsel for the petitioner, in his asking for the here in above extracted relief, has made the following submissions:-

(i) It is a case of false implication, as during the short span of 16-17 days, he is involved in four other cases;

(ii) Prior to December 2023, he has clean antecedents;

(iii) The co-accused, who was driving the motorcycle i.e. Manpreet Singh, has already been granted the relief of regular bail by the learned trial Court concerned;

(iv) The person who has purchased the stolen property, i.e. the mobile phone, has also been extended the relief of regular bail.

(v) Petitioner has suffered incarceration of more than 06 months, as on today.

(vi) Out of the total 17 prosecution witnesses cited in the final report, none has been examined till date.

Submissions of The Learned State Counsel

4. Per contra, the learned State counsel, who is in receipt of advance notice, has opposed the grant of regular bail to the petitioner on the ground that he is the main accused, who has snatched the mobile phone of the complainant. Learned State counsel has placed on record the custody certificate of the petitioner, as issued by the Deputy Superintendent, Model Jail, Chandigarh. The same is taken on record. A perusal of the custody certificate reveals that the petitioner has suffered incarceration of 06 months and 12 days, as on today. Learned State counsel on instructions, imparted to him by ASI Jasbir Singh, submits that after conclusion of the investigation, the final report under Section 173 Cr.P.C., had already been filed on 19.02.2024, and the charges were framed on 04.05.2024. Learned State counsel further submits that out of the total 17 prosecution witnesses cited in the final report, none has been examined till date.

Analysis

5. Before embarking upon the process of evaluating the arguments addressed by the learned counsels for the parties and penning down any opinion upon the instant petition, it is deemed imperative to capture an overview of some significant legal propositions.

6. "Bail is the Rule and Jail is an Exception". This basic principle of criminal jurisprudence was laid down by the Hon'ble Supreme Court, way back in 1978, in its landmark judgment titled "State of Rajasthan v. Balchand alias Baliay", 1977 AIR 2447, 1978 SCR (1) 535. This principle finds its roots in one of the most distinguished fundamental rights, as enshrined in Article 21 of the Constitution of India. Though the underlying objective behind detention of a person is to ensure easy availability of an accused for trial, without any inconvenience, however, in case the presence of an accused can be secured otherwise, then detention is not compulsory.

7. The right to a speedy trial is one of the rights of a detained person. However, while deciding application for regular bail, the Courts shall also take into consideration the fundamental precept of criminal jurisprudence, which is "the presumption of innocence", besides the gravity of offence(s) involved.

8. In "Gurbaksh Singh Sibbia v. State of Punjab", (1980) 2 SCC 565 at 586-588, the purpose of granting bail is set out by the Hon'ble Supreme Court with great felicity as follows:-

"27. It is not necessary to refer to decisions which deal with the right to ordinary bail because that right does not furnish an exact parallel to the right to ant