Criminal Lawyer: Order granting bail should contain reasons for allowing it; SC.
- 16:30Supreme Court of India
Justice Abhay Manohar Sapre and Justice Indu Malhotra
The Allahabad High Court had granted the bail to the accused / respondent no. 2 in case, inter alia, under murder, without assigning any reasons, dealing with the facts of the case in the impugned order. The SC {Mauji Ram versus State of Uttar Pradesh and another} while setting aside the said order holds that the court should always assign reasons for granting bail - and the reasons may be short and consigned.
It was held:
"12. In our considered opinion, the High Court committed jurisdictional error in passing the impugned order because while passing the impugned order, the High Court did not assign any reason whatsoever as to on what grounds, even though of a prima facie nature, it considered just and proper to grant bail to the respondents.
13.Time and again this Court has emphasized the need for assigning the reasons while granting bail (see Ajay Kumar Sharma vs. State of U.P. & Ors., (2005) 7 SCC 507, Lokesh Singh vs. State of U.P. & Anr., (2008) 16 SCC 753 & Dataram Singh vs. State of U.P. & Anr., (2018) 3 SCC 22). Though it may not be necessary to give categorical finding while granting or rejecting the bail for want of full evidence adduced by the prosecution as also by the defence at that stage yet it must appear from a perusal of the order that the Court has applied its mind to the relevant facts in the light of the material filed by the prosecution at the time of consideration of bail application. It is unfortunate that neither the law laid down by this Court, nor the material filed by the prosecution was taken note of by the High Court while considering the grant of bail to the respondents."
The SC while allowing the appeal of the complainant has set aside the order granting bail and directed the accused to surrender before the Trial Court. In the said case the Session Court had rejected the bail initially.