In an appeal filed before the Supreme Court to challenge a judgment and order dated 04-11-2025 by the Bombay High Court, whereby an application seeking regular bail had been rejected, a Division Bench of Justice B.V. Nagarathna and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan granted bail to the appellant, considering his length of incarceration and on the basis of the principle of parity.
A First Information Report (FIR) dated 25-11-2017 had been lodged against the appellant for the commission of offenses punishable under Sections 302, 307, 120B, 147, 148, 149, 323 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (IPC), Sections 4, and 25 of the Arms Act, 1959 (Arms Act).
The appellant submitted that he had been in jail since 04-12-2017, whereas out of eleven accused persons, one was absconding, another one had passed away, and seven had already been enlarged on regular bail. It was asserted that despite being in jail for more than eight years, the trial had not commenced, and that as many as forty witnesses were to be examined, which would also delay the trial.
Considering the appellant’s length of incarceration and the principle of parity, the Court stated that he may be released on bail, subject to certain conditions. Further, the Court said that since the trial had yet to commence, the appellant ought to be granted bail, as were other similarly placed accused persons.
Hence, the appeal was allowed, and the appellant was directed to be expeditiously produced before the Trial Court and released on bail, with appropriate conditions to ensure his presence in the proceedings. The appellant was directed to cooperate in the trial, not to misuse his liberty, and to refrain from contacting any of the witnesses. Lastly, it was stated that any breach of the conditions would result in the cancellation of bail.
Appearances:
For Petitioner – Mr. Pulkit Agarwal (AOR), Mr. Jaydeep Mane, Mr. Yash Fadtare, Mr. Sudhanshu Kumar, Mr. Anubhav Lamba, Mr. Sudhanshu Kaushesh, Mr. Rajat Kumar
For Respondents – Mr. Aaditya Aniruddha Pande (AOR), Mr. Siddharth Dharmadhikari, Mr. Shrirang B. Varma, Mr. Sourav Singh, Mr. Chitransha Singh Sikarwar
