Bail is the rule and jail is the exception; courts must grant bail when a case is made out, regardless of the seriousness of allegations.

ORDER

This Bail Application is filed under Section 483 of Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023 ( for short ' BNSS ').

2. Petitioner herein is the accused in OR No.4/2025 of Pudur Forest Range Office, Palakkad District, registered for the offences punishable under Sections 2 (16), 9, 39(1)(2)(3), 50 and 51 of Wildlife Protection Act , 1972 (Amendment Act, 2022).

3. The prosecution case is that, on 29.03.2025, on the basis of the prior information, the forest officials of the Pudur Forest Range Office, Palakkad District, searched the house of the petitioner herein and found 3 kilograms of the meat of spotted deer from his house, which, according to the petitioner, was sold to him by another accused. Thus, the accused allegedly committed the above offences.

4. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned Public Prosecutor.

5. The learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that, as per the prosecution allegation itself, the petitioner did not hunt the wild animal, he is only a purchaser of meat from another accused. He has been in judicial custody from 29.03.2025 onwards. He has no criminal antecedents.

6. The learned Public Prosecutor opposed the bail application. The learned Public Prosecutor submitted that the petitioner has committed a very serious offence.

7. It is a well accepted principle that the bail is the rule and the jail is the exception. The Hon'ble Supreme Court in Chidambaram. P v Directorate of Enforcement [ (2020) 13 SCC 791 ] after considering all the earlier judgments, observed that, the basic jurisprudence relating to bail remains the same inasmuch as the grant of bail is the rule and refusal is the exception so as to ensure that the accused has the opportunity of securing fair trial.

8. Moreover, in Jalaluddin Khan v. Union of India [2024 KHC 6431], the Hon'ble Supreme Court observed thus:

“21. Before we part with the Judgment, we must mention here that the Special Court and the High Court did not consider the material in the charge sheet objectively. Perhaps the focus was more on the activities of PFI, and therefore, the appellant's case could not be properly appreciated. When a case is made out for a grant of bail, the Courts should not have any hesitation in granting bail. The allegations of the prosecution may be very serious. But, the duty of the Courts is to consider the case for grant of bail in accordance with the law. "Bail is the rule and jail is an exception" is a settled law. Even in a case like the present case where there are stringent conditions for the grant of bail in the relevant statutes, the same rule holds good with only modification that the bail can be granted if the conditions in the statute are satisfied. The rule also means that once a case is made out for the grant of bail, the Court cannot decline to grant bail. If the Courts start denying bail in deserving cases, it will be a violation of the rights guaranteed under Art.21 of our Constitution.”

9. In Manish Sisodia v. Directorate of Enforcement [2024 KHC 6426], also the Hon'ble Supreme Court observed thus:

“53. The Court further observed that, over a period of time, the trial courts and the High Courts have forgotten a very well - settled principle of law that bail is not to be withheld as a punishment. From our experience, we can say that it appears that the trial courts and the High Courts attempt to play safe in matters of grant of bail. The principle that bail is a rule and refusal is an exception is, at times, followed in breach. On account of non - grant of bail even in straight forward open and shut cases, this Court is flooded with huge number of bail petitions thereby adding to the huge pendency. It is high time that the trial courts and the High Courts should recognize the principle that "bail is rule and jail is exception".”

10. Considering the dictum laid down in the above decisions and considering the facts and circumstances of this case, this Bail Application is allowed with the following direction