Allahabad High Court Elucidates Ambit Of 'Exception' In The 'Bail Is Rule, Jail Is Exception' Principle Of Criminal Jurisprudence

The Allahabad High Court recently provided clarity on the scope of "Exceptions" within the "Bail is the rule and Jail is an exception" principle of Criminal Jurisprudence. These exceptions are circumstances where the general rule of granting bail is overridden due to specific factors.

"These exceptions might include concerns about flight risk, potential danger to the community, the likelihood of the accused tampering with evidence, or possibility of repeating offence. Essentially, while bail is generally favoured to ensure the presumption of innocence, exceptions exist when there are compelling reasons to detain someone before trial," a bench of Justice Krishan Pahal observed.

The Court added that the phrase "Bail is the rule and Jail is an exception" underscores the principle that individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty and in this context, "jail as an exception" refers to situations where a person's pre-trial liberty is restricted due to specific circumstances.

The Court was essentially dealing with an application filed by one Bharat Singh seeking bail in a Murder case. It was his case that he had been in jail since October 2018 and the period of incarceration being more than five years is itself a valid ground for his release.

On the other hand, the Counsel for the state argued that the applicant was convicted in another murder case and the criminal appeal against the said order of conviction was dismissed by the High Court and an SLP filed by applicant Bharat Singh was also dismissed by the Supreme Court.

It was also submitted that he allegedly forged his age to be 77 years to get the benefit of the Government 2023 Order for premature release and that the said order for his release had been challenged before the High Court and the remission order of co-accused Man Singh Gurjar had already been set-aside by the HC.

Importantly, it was further argued that the applicant and his family are a bunch of hardened criminals who are involved in about twenty-nine cases in all and the applicant is a previous convict in three (3) cases and in one of the cases, the conviction has been affirmed up to the Supreme Court.

Against the backdrop of these submissions, the Court, at the outset, observed that the criminal justice system is designed to maintain order, protect citizens, and ensure that wrongdoers face consequences for their actions.

However, the Court added, an alarming trend has emerged where hardened criminals exploit loopholes in legal proceedings, and capitalize on ambiguities, procedural errors, or inadequacies in legislation to evade the full force of the law.

"Whether through technicalities, or delays, these individuals navigate a legal landscape that inadvertently provides them with opportunities to escape justice. The exploitation of legal loopholes undermines public confidence in the criminal justice system. Victims may feel betrayed, and communities may lose faith in the ability of the legal framework to protect them. Additionally, this phenomenon perpetuates a cycle of crime, as criminals observe and learn from successful manoeuvres within the legal system," the Court remarked.

The Court underscored that striking a balance between efficiency and justice remains a challenging aspect of legal proceedings and that society must remain vigilant in its pursuit of a fair and effective criminal justice system.

The Court further noted that the applicant in the instant case had been convicted for the murder of the brother of one of the victims of the instant incident and the same was the motive for committing the instant offence.

Further stressing that he is a previous convict in two other cases, the Court said that the long criminal history of the applicant was an important factor which goes against him.

In view of this, finding that the the instant case falls in the category of "exception" as mentioned in the old saying "Bail is the rule, and Jail is an exception", the Court rejected the bail plea and dismissed the petition. 

Case title - Bharat Singh vs. State of U.P. 2024 LiveLaw (AB) 140

Case Citation: 2024 LiveLaw (AB) 140

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