The right to seek bail is a fundamental right linked to personal liberty, necessitating timely access to legal aid for undertrials, particularly from marginalized backgrounds.

order:

“Sri Anil Raghav, learned counsel for the applicant states that the applicant does not want to press this bail application.

It is dismissed accordingly as not pressed.”

8. The applicant filed his second bail application as an undertrial on 25.04.2019. The order sheet discloses that the application was heard on merits for the first time on

16.07.2022 and the applicant was enlarged on interim bail on date. Sureties imposed by the trial court could not be provided by the applicant due to his penurious condition and social exclusion. Hence the applicant was not set forth at liberty. This fact was brought to the notice of this Court. The surety demands were made commensurate to his socioeconomic status by this Court’s order dated 21.07.2022. A fresh report was also called from the trial court. The report dated

15.02.2024 sent by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Court No. 2, Bulandshahar records that the applicant has been set forth at liberty pursuant to the interim bail granted to the applicant by this Court.

9. Bail application was earlier argued by the learned counsel for the applicant. On later dates when the matter was taken up for hearing, none appeared on behalf of the applicant. This Court did not dismiss the bail application for non prosecution in view of the law laid down by this Court in Maneesh Pathak vs. State of U.P. 5 The Court appointed amicus curiae to

represent the applicant at the hearing of the bail application. II. Submissions of the learned counsels for the parties

10. Shri N. I. Jafri, learned Senior Counsel assisted by Shri Sadrul Islam Jafri, and Shri Ali Jamal, learned counsels, Shri Vinay Saran, learned Senior Counsel assisted by Shri Saumitra Dwivedi, and Shri Tanzeel Ahmad learned counsels, Shri Dharmendra Singhal learned Senior Counsel assisted by Shri Shivendra Raj Singhal learned counsel, Shri Manish Tiwary learned Senior Counsel assisted by Shri Atharva Dixit learned counsel, Shri Rajiv Lochan Shukla, learned counsel and Shri Kunal Shah learned counsel were requested to appear on behalf of the respective applicant as amicus curiae and to assist the Court on the constitutional issues arising in these cases.

Counsels in connected bail applications: I. Shri Ashutosh Kumar Pandey, learned counsel for the applicant in Criminal Misc. Bail Application No. 16379 of 2024 ( Kamil Vs. State of U.P. );

II. Shri Dileep Singh Yadav, learned counsel for the applicant in Criminal Misc. Bail Application No.14678 of 2024 (Muneesh @ Khajanchi v. State of U.P.) ;

III. Shri Istiyaq Ali, learned counsel assisted by Ms. Jagriti Pandey, learned counsel for the applicant in Criminal Misc. Bail Application No.14084 of 2024 (Mumtaj v. State of U.P.) ;

2023 SCC OnLine All 649

IV. Shri Uma Datta Tripathi, learned counsel for the applicant in Criminal Misc. Bail Application No.17643 of 2024 (Vinesh v. State of U.P.) ;

V. Shri Rajiv Lochan Shukla, learned amicus curiae assisted by Shri Kuldeep Kumar, learned counsel for the applicant in Criminal Misc. Bail Application No.18960 of 2024 (Titu v. State of U.P.) ;

VI. Shri Ram Krishna Mishra, learned counsel for the applicant in Criminal Misc. Bail Application No.6287 of 2024 (Mintu v. State of U.P.) ;

VII. Shri N. I. Jafri, learned Senior Counsel and Shri Vinay Saran, learned Senior Counsel assisted by Shri Satish Sharma on behalf of the applicant in Criminal Misc. Bail Application No. 21823 of 2024 ( Saleem @ Chhukali Vs. State of U.P. );

VIII. Shri Irfan Ali, learned counsel assisted by Shri Ajit Kumar, learned counsel on behalf of the applicant in Criminal Misc. Bail Application No. 17888 of 2024 (Pramod Kumar Vs. State of U.P.) ;

IX. Shri Rajnish Kumar Srivastava, learned counsel on behalf of the applicant in Criminal Misc. Bail Application No. 19701 of 2024 (Sunil Kumar Alias Chuhi Alias