NEW DELHI, April 1: Jails are overcrowded and their living conditions appalling and the courts should ensure that trials, especially in cases where special laws enact stringent provisions, are taken up and concluded speedily, the Supreme Court has said.
The top court said if the trials are not concluded in time, the injustice wrecked on the individual is immeasurable.
A bench of Justices S Ravindra Bhat and Dipankar Datta made the observation while enlarging a man accused under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act on bail.
“Incarceration has further deleterious effects, where the accused belongs to the weakest economic strata: immediate loss of livelihood, and in several cases, scattering of families as well as loss of family bonds and alienation from society.
“The courts, therefore, have to be sensitive to these aspects, and ensure that trials, especially in cases where special laws enact stringent provisions, are taken up and concluded speedily,” the bench said.
The apex court said laws which impose stringent conditions for grant of bail, may be necessary in public interest; yet, if trials are not concluded in time, the injustice wrecked on the individual is immeasurable.
“Jails are overcrowded and their living conditions, more often than not, appalling. According to the Union Home Ministry’s response to Parliament, the National Crime Records Bureau had recorded that as on December 31, 2021, over 5,54,034 prisoners were lodged in jails against a total capacity of 4,25,069 lakhs in the country. Of these 122,852 were convicts; the rest 4,27,165 were undertrials,” the bench said.
The top court, while ordering release of the man on bail, said he has been in custody for over seven years and four months.
The progress of the trial has been at a snail’s pace as 30 witnesses have been examined, whereas 34 more have to be examined, it said.
PERSONAL LIBERTY
The Supreme Court has said that the right to personal liberty is directly related to the inalienable right towards human dignity and personhood, and the court is conscious that none should suffer incarceration without legal authority.
It stressed that fundamental rights are not isolated and separate, but rather form an interconnected web of liberty and freedom, and it is the duty of this court to discourage prolonged incarceration.
A bench comprising justices K.M. Joseph, Hrishikesh Roy, and B.V. Nagarathna said: “The relevant provisions of the CrPC (Code of Criminal Procedure) are the laws that are essential to protect an individual’s liberty. It regulates the societal need for limited detention of persons charged with serious offences.”
The bench said the Constitution scheme provides that all human rights, including the right to personal liberty, are specifications of one special fundamental right, which is the right to have one’s personal dignity respected.
The bench added, “We have, therefore, adopted the interpretation whereby personal liberty is safeguarded and justice would not be compromised and in the grand scheme of things, the unjustified detention of individuals is eschewed.”
Justice Roy, who authored the judgment on behalf of the bench, said as a court of law, once the legal stipulations of the ‘Code’ are satisfied, “we are duty-bound to apply the law and prevent unlawful detention and protect personal liberty”.
Justice Roy noted, “Whatever be the outcome, this court is conscious that none should suffer incarceration without legal authority. Although the state is tasked to prevent crime and maintain security, personal liberty should not be the collateral.”
He added that the right to personal liberty is directly related to the inalienable right towards human dignity and personhood and the concept of dignity is central to constitutional law discourse.
The bench stressed that fundamental rights are not isolated and separate, but rather form an interconnected web of liberty and freedom. (Agencies)
