'Democratic country must not function like police state', Supreme Court flags rising bail rejections

New Delhi: The Supreme Court has expressed dismay over rejection of bail pleas by trial courts in "not very serious cases" despite the completion of investigations.

A bench comprising justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan on Monday said a democratic country must not function like a police state, where law enforcement agencies exercise arbitrary powers to detain individuals without genuine necessity.

It observed that two decades ago, bail pleas in smaller cases rarely reached the high courts, let alone the top court.

"It is shocking that the Supreme Court is adjudicating bail pleas in cases that should be disposed of at the trial court level. The system is being burdened unnecessarily," Justice Oka said while hearing a bail plea.

This is not the first time the top court has flagged this issue. It has repeatedly urged trial courts and high courts to adopt a more liberal stance in granting bail, particularly in cases involving minor infractions.

The apex court had previously expressed its anguish over what it termed "intellectual dishonesty" by lower courts in denying bail, despite multiple directives emphasising the importance of protecting individual liberty when custodial detention is not required.

During the hearing, the bench granted bail to an accused who had been in custody for over two years in a cheating case.

The accused's bail plea was rejected by both the trial court and the Gujarat High Court, despite the investigation being completed and a chargesheet filed.

"It is unfortunate that bail matters in cases triable by magistrates are being brought before the Supreme Court. We are sorry to say that people are not getting bail when they should," Justice Oka said.

In 2022, the Supreme Court imposed restrictions on investigative agencies from making arrests in cognisable offences carrying a maximum punishment of up to seven years if custody was not required.

It had also urged lower courts to safeguard individual liberty by ensuring that bail is granted in a fair and timely manner.

The bench said that an accused who had cooperated with the investigation and was not arrested during the probe should not be taken into custody merely after a chargesheet is filed.