Category: Bail Declined

Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (CrPC) — Section 438 — Anticipatory Bail — Absconding accused — General rule is that an absconder is not entitled to anticipatory bail, exception being when court is prima facie satisfied that no case is made out against the accused after perusing FIR, case diary, and other materials — Accused absconded for almost six and a half years, threatened victim, had criminal antecedents, and was not traceable — Acquittal of co-accused does not automatically entitle absconding accused to anticipatory bail, as prosecution is not expected to adduce evidence against absconding accused during trial of co-accused — Granting anticipatory bail to an absconding accused sets a bad precedent

2026 INSC 157 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH BALMUKUND SINGH GAUTAM Vs. STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH AND ANOTHER ( Before : J.B. Pardiwala and Vijay Bishnoi, JJ. ) Criminal…

Penal Code, 1860 (IPC) — Sections 406, 419, 420, 467, 468, 471, 506 — Cheating, Criminal Breach of Trust, Forgery — Bail — High Court order granting bail to accused set aside — Accused is a habitual offender with multiple aliases, fake IDs, and a history of absconding and non-cooperation with trial — Bail was granted on parity with co-accused, but this principle was misapplied without considering the accused’s individual conduct and criminal antecedents — Grant of bail poses a risk to society — Trial to be expedited.

2026 INSC 161 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH RAKESH MITTAL Vs. AJAY PAL GUPTA @ SONU CHAUDHARY AND ANOTHER ( Before : Sanjay Kumar and K. Vinod Chandran, JJ.…

Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (CrPC) — Section 439(2) — Cancellation of Bail — Annulment of Bail — Distinction — Cancellation of bail is generally based on supervening circumstances and post-bail misconduct; Annulment of an order granting bail is warranted when the order is vitiated by perversity, illegality, arbitrariness, or non-application of mind — High Court granted bail ignoring prior cancellation of bail due to commission of murder by accused (while on bail) of a key witness in the first case, and failed to consider the gravity of offenses (including under SC/ST (POA) Act) and threat to fair trial — Such omissions and reliance on irrelevant considerations (existence of civil dispute) render the bail order perverse and unsustainable, justifying annulment by the Supreme Court. (Paras 12, 12.1, 12.2, 12.4, 12.5)

2025 INSC 1483 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH LAKSHMANAN Vs. STATE THROUGH THE DEPUTY SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE AND OTHERS ( Before : B.V. Nagarathna and R. Mahadevan, JJ. )…

Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (CrPC) — Quashing of FIR — Protection from Arrest — Directions for time-bound investigation — High Court, while declining to quash the FIR, directed the completion of investigation within 90 days and granted protection from arrest till the court takes cognizance (following ‘Shobhit Nehra v. State of U.P.’) — ‘Legality’: Such directions granting protection from arrest while refusing to quash are contrary to the law established by the Supreme Court, particularly ‘Neeharika Infrastructure Pvt. Ltd. v. State of Maharashtra’ and ‘State of Telangana v. Habib Abdullah Jeelani’ — Granting protection from arrest in this manner amounts to an order under Section 438 CrPC (Anticipatory Bail) without satisfying the statutory conditions and is legally unsustainable and inappropriate — High Courts must scrupulously avoid passing blanket orders of “no arrest” or “no coercive steps” while dismissing or disposing of quashing petitions under Section 482 CrPC or Article 226 of the Constitution. (Paras 4, 15, 16)

2025 INSC 1480 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH STATE OF U.P. AND ANOTHER Vs. MOHD ARSHAD KHAN AND ANOTHER ( Before : Sanjay Karol and Nongmeikapam Kotiswar Singh, JJ.…

Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 — Section 439(2) — Cancellation of Bail — Locus Standi — An aggrieved party, including the complainant or father of the deceased, has the requisite locus standi to seek cancellation/annulment of bail granted to the accused, as the power under Section 439(2) Cr.P.C. may be invoked not only by the State but also by any aggrieved party. (Paras 10, 10.1, 10.3)

2025 INSC 1367 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH YOGENDRA PAL SINGH Vs. RAGHVENDRA SINGH ALIAS PRINCE AND ANOTHER ( Before : B.V. Nagarathna and R. Mahadevan, JJ. ) Criminal…

Considerations for cancellation — Principles are distinct from those for granting bail — Bail should not ordinarily be cancelled unless procured by fraud/misrepresentation, allegations are grave impacting society, release creates fear/terror, or accused may abscond/tamper with evidence — Where allegations are severe, shaking conscience of the Court, and there is an imminent likelihood of accused adversely affecting fair trial, bail is liable to be cancelled.

2025 INSC 788 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH CENTRAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION Vs. SEKH JAMIR HOSSAIN AND OTHERS ( Before : Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta, JJ. ) Criminal…

Cancellation of Bail — Factors for Consideration — Child Trafficking — Appeals preferred by victims (kith and kin of trafficked children) assailing High Court orders granting bail to accused involved in a large-scale, organized, interstate child trafficking racket — The offences alleged involve kidnapping, buying, and selling of minor children primarily from impoverished backgrounds, punishable under Ss. 363, 311 & 370(5) IPC —High Court’s approach found to be callous, overlooking critical aspects including the organized nature of the crime and the subsequent absconding of several accused post-bail, thereby jeopardizing the trial.

2025 INSC 482 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH PINKI Vs. STATE OF UTTAR PRADESH AND ANOTHER ( Before : J.B. Pardiwala and R. Mahadevan, JJ. ) Criminal Appeal No.…

The Supreme Court set aside the High Court’s order granting bail to respondent no.1 —The High Court’s decision was not in line with established principles for granting bail — The material on record indicates respondent no.1’s involvement in the scam — The Court emphasized the need to consider the nature of the accusation, the role of the accused, and the potential impact on the trial when granting bail —

2024 INSC 636 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH MANIK MADHUKAR SARVE AND OTHERS Vs. VITTHAL DAMUJI MEHER AND OTHERS — Respondent ( Before : Hima Kohli and Ahsanuddin Amanullah,…

Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 — Section 483(3) — Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 — Sections 4 and 44(1)(b) — The Supreme Court has set aside orders of the Delhi High Court that stayed the bail granted to appellant accused in a money laundering case — The court observed that the power to grant an interim stay of an order granting bail can only be exercised in exceptional cases where a strong prima facie case of the existence of grounds for cancellation of bail is made out — The court further clarified that as a normal rule, ex parte stay of an order granting bail should not be granted and the court must record brief reasons for coming to the conclusion that the case was an exceptional one — The appeals were allowed on these terms, and the findings recorded in the judgment were only for considering the legality and validity of the order of stay on the order granting bail.

2024 INSC 546 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH PARVINDER SINGH KHURANA — Appellant Vs. DIRECTORATE OF ENFORCEMENT — Respondent ( Before : Abhay S. Oka and Augustine George Masih,…

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