SC calls for speeding up release of accused after getting bail

Taking note of the fact that very often accused are forced to stay longer inside the prison even after being granted bail, because a copy of the bail order could not reach the jail authorities in time, the Supreme Court on Wednesday called for adopting “modern methods” to expedite the process. The observation was made by a Bench comprising Justices A K Mathur and Markandeya Katju, while admitting appeals by some accused in the Mumbai blasts case.

Taking a cue from the case of actor Sanjay Dutt, also a convict in the 1993 blasts case, who despite being granted bail by the apex court was released only three days later from Yerwada jail in Pune, the Bench said: “…sometimes even after granting the bail order by the court, the same is not complied with for a few days.”

“It is expected that the bail order once passed should be complied with most expeditiously and the detenue released otherwise there will be violation of Article 21 (Right to Life and Liberty) of the Constitution.”

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It asked the authorities for adopting some modern techniques so that copy of the order reaches the magistrate concerned at the earliest.

If the court proposal is taken earnestly, day would not be far when a fax or a photocopy of the bail order would be accepted by the magistrate in proceeding to release the accused/convict on bail.