SC grants bail in attempt-to-murder case citing 5-year incarceration, slow trial

NEW DELHI: Taking note of prolonged incarceration and the slow progress of the trial, the Supreme Court has granted bail to an accused in an attempt-to-murder case who has been in custody for nearly five years, while the prosecution has examined only five witnesses so far.

A Bench of Justices J.B. Pardiwala and K.V. Viswanathan passed the order while hearing a Special Leave Petition (SLP) filed by Tota Pahelwan alias Sunil Yadav against an Allahabad High Court order denying him regular bail.

In its order, the apex court recorded that the petitioner has been in judicial custody as an undertrial prisoner for almost five years.

“We take into consideration the fact that the petitioner is in judicial custody as an undertrial prisoner since almost 5 years. Till this date the prosecution has been able to examine 5 witnesses,” the Justice Pardiwala-led Bench observed.

It further noted the petitioner's advocate Alakh Alok Srivastava’s submission that the prosecution intended to examine a total of 22 witnesses, indicating that the trial is likely to take considerable time to conclude.

Considering the facts and circumstances, the Supreme Court said that it was inclined to exercise discretion in favour of the accused despite the serious nature of the allegations.

“This being a case of attempt to commit murder punishable under Section 307 of the IPC, we are persuaded to exercise our discretion in favour of the petitioner, more particularly, when a similarly situated co-accused, namely, Rambhool, is on bail,” the order said.