The Gujarat High Court has made significant strides in expediting the disposal of bail applications by discontinuing the practice of issuing ‘Rule Nisi’ and adjourning bail matters. This change has led to the resolution of approximately 3,000 bail applications within a month, as announced by Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal and Justice Aniruddha Mayee.
The announcement came during the hearing of a special criminal application filed by Bhavesh Desai, challenging specific procedures employed by the High Court in handling bail matters. Chief Justice Agarwal stated,
“We have achieved very good results after stopping this practice. Approximately 3,000 bail applications have been disposed of within a month. Currently, only 1,000 bail applications remain pending with the High Court.”
Senior Advocate Asim Pandya, representing the petitioner, highlighted an amendment to clause 25a of the Criminal Manual implemented in May 2022. This amendment mandates the disposal of bail applications within three to seven days from the first date of hearing, applicable to both lower courts and the High Court. Chief Justice Agarwal emphasized the need for cooperation from all stakeholders for the expedited disposal of cases.
“If you won’t cooperate, then the provision wouldn’t apply,”
she stated.
The court clarified that it was not issuing a mandamus to decide matters within the specified timeframe as per the manual. Pandya raised concerns about the violation of Supreme Court guidelines, such as the Arnesh Kumar guidelines, which aim to prevent arbitrary arrests. The court responded by noting that the guidelines do not prohibit arrests altogether and emphasized the importance of examining each case individually.
Pandya also brought attention to the High Court’s previous practice of issuing notices to public prosecutors even in bailable offenses. The court clarified that this practice has been replaced with a new mandatory system of advance notice to prosecutors, ensuring that notices are not issued mechanically.
In concluding the proceedings, the bench expressed its intent to discourage unnecessary adjournments and urged both advocates and courts not to entertain such requests. This approach aims to streamline the bail application process, ensuring a more efficient judicial system.
