Imprisonment can’t be prolonged only to teach accused a lesson, says HC as it grants bail to man held for ‘kidnapping’

The HC was hearing the bail plea of the petitioner who was arrested in September 2020 following a complaint by the family of the woman who was allegedly kidnapped.

2020 kidnapping case, Delhi HC, man grants bail, arrest for kidnapping, indian express, indian express news

The court observed that the seriousness of an offence was not the only criteria for denial of bail, adding that “merely because the offence was of serious nature, it could not be the ground to curtail the personal liberty of an undertrial for an indefinite period”. (Express Photo)

Listen to this article

00:00

1x 1.5x 1.8x

While granting bail to a man who has been in custody for over two years after he was accused of kidnapping a 24-year-old woman in 2020, the Delhi High Court has said that imprisonment can’t be prolonged during trial to teach the accused a lesson.

A single-judge bench of Justice Vikas Mahajan, in its June 7 order, observed: “In the present case, the charge sheet has already been filed and no recovery is required to be made from the petitioner who is in custody since 04.09.2020, which is almost two years and nine months…There are 23 witnesses cited by the prosecution and it will take long time to conclude the trial. At the stage of the trial, imprisonment cannot be prolonged only for the purpose of teaching the accused a lesson. The case of the prosecution and the defence of the accused persons is yet to be tested at trial.”

The court said, “Accordingly, the petition is allowed and the petitioner is admitted to bail on his furnishing a personal bond in the sum of Rs. 20,000/- with one surety bond of the like amount subject to the satisfaction of the learned Trial Court, ”while granting bail to the man subject to certain conditions.

The HC further said that it was not the prosecution’s case that any “injury was caused by the accused persons to the victim”. The HC further noted that even the medico legal case (MLC) of the victim recorded “no fresh external injuries seen through naked eye examination”.

“It is also not the case of the prosecution that the petitioner is a habitual offender or hardened criminal, who in the event of being enlarged on bail, may flee from justice or again indulge in such activities,” Justice Mahajan noted.

The HC was hearing the bail plea of the petitioner who was arrested in September 2020 following a complaint by the family of the woman who was allegedly kidnapped.

Her father had alleged that the kidnappers asked for Rs 40 lakh as ransom and threatened to kill his daughter if the demand was not fulfilled. Based on the father’s statement, apart from section 365 (kidnapping), other sections including 364A (kidnapping for ransom), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) had been added to the FIR.

A search was made for the woman with the help of location and Call Detail Records of her number and she was found on September 4, 2020 in the custody of certain accused persons – a 26-year-old man, the petitioner before the HC, and his girlfriend in Noida. The said accused persons were arrested on September 4, 2020, the court noted.

The court further observed the seriousness of an offence was not the only criteria for denial of bail, and merely because the offence was of a serious nature, it could not be the ground to curtail the personal liberty of an undertrial for an indefinite period.

A person who has not been convicted, the court observed, should be kept in custody only if there is a possibility that he might abscond or tamper with evidence or threaten the witnesses.