‘Supreme Court remarks had chilling effect on me’: Why an Allahabad HC judge sought a permanent break from hearing bail pleas

Justice Bhatia said, “… a second bail application was placed before me. My attention was drawn to reports circulated in Live Law with regard to a judgment passed by the Hon’ble Supreme Court… While hearing a Criminal Appeal challenging a bail order passed by me, Hon’ble the Supreme Court had made certain observations.”

Justice Pankaj Bhatia

What did the Supreme Court say?

According to him, the SC (in paragraph 4) had said, “The impugned order is one of the most shocking and disappointing orders that we have come across over a period of time.”

“We fail to understand on plain reading of the impugned order as to what the High Court is trying to convey. What weighed with the High Court in exercising its discretion in favour of the accused for the purpose of grant of bail in a very serious crime like dowry death. What did the High Court do? All that the High Court did was to record the submission of the defence counsel and thereafter proceed to observe that the accused was in jail since 27.07.2025 and there being no criminal history, he was entitled to bail. Accordingly, bail came to be granted,” the top court further said.

The SC (in paragraph 29) also said, “Registry is directed to forward one copy of this order to the Registrar General of the High Court of Allahabad, who in turn shall place this order before Hon’ble the Chief Justice of the High Court of Allahabad.”

Referring to this, Justice Bhatia further said, “Although, it is well known that there is no judge who can claim that his order never has been set aside or interfered, and I also feel from the perusal of the judgment that the bail order granting the bail was apparently subject to interference, however, the observations made in the judgment particularly in paras 4 and 29 have had a huge demoralising and chilling effect on me.”

“In view thereof, I do not deem it appropriate to hear the present bail application,” he added.

“The bail application is released to be placed before Hon’ble the Chief Justice for assigning the same to another Bench with a further request to the Hon’ble Chief Justice not to assign Bail Roster to me in future,” his order read.