The Supreme Court heard a plea to recall its order on deferring default bail cases linked to the Ritu Chhabaria ruling. SG flagged a nationwide surge in bail pleas, while the CJI assured a review of court records before deciding.
New Delhi: On August 12, the Supreme Court, led by the Chief Justice of India (CJI), heard a recall application regarding its earlier order to defer the hearing of any default bail pleas filed in any court on the basis of the Ritu Chhabaria ruling.
During the hearing, Solicitor General (SG) explained how the matter began and why the recall request was being made.
The SG told the bench that the issue initially started in a very different context.
“First, a petitioner sought permission to send home cooked food to her jailed husband, another similar plea was tagged. Both were dismissed.”
He went on to narrate how later, in another case related to a chargesheet, the question of default bail arose.
The Delhi High Court, relying on the Supreme Court’s earlier Ritu Chhabaria ruling, granted relief. This decision became a precedent, and similar pleas started being filed across the country.
The SG urged the bench to consider hearing the Special Leave Petition (SLP) before a three-judge bench to bring clarity to the law on the issue.
The SG said,
“Once the order came, thousands sought default bail citing delays in filing chargesheets, so we had to seek a stay,”
The SG also stressed on the scale of the problem.
He added,
“Hundreds of default bail pleas are being filed nationwide hence the request for a stay,”
The CJI, while responding to the SG’s arguments, said,
“We can examine the issue, but why recall the judgment?”
The CJI also informed that the court would go through the records before making a decision.
The CJI remarked,
“We’ll review the court records before deciding,”
This hearing revolves around the interpretation and application of the Supreme Court’s Ritu Chhabaria judgment, which has been cited widely in default bail matters.
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The Enforcement Directorate contends that the judgment’s interpretation has led to a flood of default bail claims, often in cases where chargesheets were delayed, and that urgent judicial clarification is needed.
The matter will now be considered further after the bench examines the case records.
Case Title:
Directorate of Enforcement versus Manpreet Singh Talwar (SLP (Crl) No. 5724/2023).
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