The Supreme Court Yesterday (April 25) criticized repeated interim bails by Odisha High Court, stressing they should be rare. It granted regular bail to Asim Mallik, jailed for 3 years in a 1,000 kg ganja case.
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NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court of India on Thursday said that giving interim bail should not become a common practice. It must only be used in special situations and should not be granted again and again.
A bench of Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and K Vinod Chandran expressed concern over the way the Odisha High Court has been repeatedly giving interim bail to the same person many times.
The Supreme Court clearly stated that although sometimes giving interim bail may be necessary, it should not be done regularly for the same person.
“We have noticed in several such cases, which are coming to this Court challenging the orders passed by the Odisha High Court, that recurring interim bail is granted for the same applicant over and over again. Though, it may be necessary in some cases to grant interim bail to take care of specific contingencies, but as a routine, interim bail should not be granted. Either the Court should grant regular bail or should refuse to grant bail. Granting interim bail should be an exception, and should not be granted in a routine manner and repeatedly,”
-the Supreme Court said.
The Court was listening to the bail request of Asim Mallik, who was arrested under Section 20(b)(ii)(C) of the NDPS Act, 1985. This section deals with the punishment for cultivating, possessing, selling, or transporting large amounts of ganja (cannabis).
Mallik was caught by the police in September 2021, along with another accused named Mukesh Kumar, at Chitrakonda Chowk in Odisha. The police said they found around 1,000 kilograms of ganja in their vehicle.
In his defense, Mallik said there was no direct evidence against him. Out of the 16 witnesses, only 7 have been examined so far. He also said that two independent witnesses said they did not know about any drug recovery. He further pointed out that he had no past criminal record.
Mallik also mentioned that after his earlier interim bail period ended, he surrendered himself to the authorities. He has never tried to influence any witness or tamper with evidence during the time he was out on bail. Based on all this, he requested the Court to give him bail.
After looking at all the facts and details, including that Mallik has already spent three years in jail, the Supreme Court decided to grant him regular bail.
“Considering the period of incarceration of the petitioner and the entire facts and circumstances of this case, we are of the opinion that a case of bail is made out for the petitioner and therefore, the prayer for bail is allowed,”
-the Court said.
Advocate on Record Shrey Kapoor and Advocate Lalitendu Mohpatra appeared on behalf of Mallik.
Advocate on Record Sharmila Upadhyay and Advocate Sarvjit Pratap Singh represented the state/respondents.
CASE TITLE:
Asim Mallik vs. The State of Odisha.
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