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UPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS | BAIL LAW AND SUPREME COURT CALL FOR REFORM | 13TH JULY | INDIAN EXPRESS

/ July, 2022, UPSC Daily Current Affairs

SYLLABUS SECTION: GS II (JUDICIARY)

WHY IN THE NEWS?

Recently, Supreme Court has underlined the pressing need for reform in the law related to bail and called on the government to consider framing a special legislation on the lines of the law in the United Kingdom.

MEANING OF BAIL?

  • It is conditional release of a defendant with the promise to appear in court when required.

TYPES OF BAIL IN INDIA

There are commonly three types of bail in India:

  1. Regular bail: It is generally grant to a person who has been arrest or is in police custody.
  2. Interim bail: This type of bail is grant for a short period of time and it is grant before the hearing for the grant of regular bail.
  3. Anticipatory bail: An application for the grant of anticipatory bail can be file by the person who discerns that he may be arrest by the police for a non-bailable offense.
What is the recent ruling about?
  • The Supreme Court underline that arrest is a draconian measure that needs to be use sparingly.
  • The ruling is essentially a reiteration of several crucial principles of criminal procedure.
Why bail needs reform?
  • Referring to the state of jails in the country, where over two-thirds lodge are undertrials,
  • Under indiscriminate arrests, majority may not even be require to be arrest despite registration of a cognizable offense.
  • There is a culture of offense being inherited by many of the prisoners.
  • The court also linked the idea of indiscriminate arrests to magistrates ignoring the rule of “bail, not jail” to a colonial mindset.
Law related to bail in India:
  • The CrPC does not define the word bail but only categories offences under the Indian Penal Code as ‘bailable’ and ‘non-bailable’.
  • The CrPC empowers magistrates to grant bail for bailable offences as a matter of right.
  • This would involve release on furnishing a bail bond, without or without security.
Other Countries Law Related to Bail:
  • The Bail Act of the United Kingdom, 1976, prescribes the procedure for granting bail.
  • The law also has provisions for ensuring legal aid for defendants.
  • The Act recognises a “general right” to be granted bail.
What has the Supreme Court said on reforms?
  • The court’s ruling is in the form of guidelines, and it also draws the line on certain procedural issues for the police and judiciary:
  • The court underlined that the CrPC, despite amendments since Independence, largely retains its original structure as drafted by a colonial power over its subjects.
  • It also highlighted that magistrate do not necessarily
  • The SC also directed all state governments and Union Territories to facilitate standing orders to comply with the orders and avoid indiscriminate arrests.

Read more: UPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS

SOURCE: INDIAN EXPRESS