Prison turns young accused criminal, not reformed: Bombay High Court grants bail

Considering the bail application, the court said that it feels that reform and rehabilitation of the undertrial accused needs to be considered, especially when the age of the accused person is young so that he gets an opportunity / or is allowed to reform, rehabilitate and earn his livelihood honourably from the perspective of social integration.

“This is a chance which the court must take considering the young age of the accused person. The applicant is very young. If the applicant is incarcerated in prison further, there is every possibility that he might lose faith in the institution and society at large and may tread the path of criminality or would waste his life. Incarceration in prison exposes many youth to abuse, as is shown statistically,” it noted.

Over 5 years jail without trial

The court was hearing a bail application filed by a 25-year-old man, Shubham Balasaheb Takale, who was facing charges under Sections 302 (murder), 323 (punishment for voluntarily causing hurt), 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation), 141 (unlawful assembly), 147 (punishment for rioting), 148 (rioting, armed with deadly weapon) of the IPC.

Justice Milind J Jadhav was dealing with a plea of a man accused in a 2018 murder case registered against him and was seeking bail.

He sought bail citing his prolonged incarceration, the delay in trial, his young age, and his fundamental right to a speedy trial and personal liberty guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution.

“Opportunity to become good citizen in society”

The court observed that the man’s prolonged incarceration of five years and three months while remaining an undertrial raised serious concerns under Article 21, particularly his right to speedy trial.

The court noted that although the trial had commenced, only three of around 35 witnesses had been examined, making completion of the trial in the foreseeable future unlikely.

It reiterated that “bail is the rule and jail is the exception”, and that pre-trial detention should not become punitive because an accused is presumed innocent until proven guilty. The court stressed that speedy trial is a fundamental right under Article 21 and that an accused should not be subjected to unnecessarily long incarceration before conviction.

It also emphasised the man’s young age, observing that prolonged imprisonment could expose young offenders to a criminal environment and potentially push them further towards criminality. The court said a reformative and rehabilitative approach should be considered for young undertrials.

“Considering the applicant’s age, if he is enlarged on bail, the court is hopeful that his family will undoubtedly do their duty to make every effort and attempt to reform and aid the applicant in leading a reformed life while on bail rather than keep him in prison and expose him to a criminal outlook and life in prison,” the ruling said.

The court underscored that every opportunity or to that extent risk should be constructively taken by the court in the case of young offenders, accused before committing such accused to further custody and give such accused an opportunity to become a good citizen in society.