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Jasminbhai Bharatbhai Kothari v. The State of Gujarat

Special Leave Petition (Criminal) · 2025 INSC 172Decided 30 Jan 2025
SLP(Crl.) (Diary No. 45970 of 2023)
Justice Vikram Nath · Justice Sandeep Mehta

Background

The petitioner, convicted for murder under Section 302 IPC (with Section 34) and an Arms Act offence, had earlier been granted temporary bail by the Gujarat High Court while his conviction appeal remained pending there. When the High Court declined to extend that temporary bail, he challenged the refusal before the Supreme Court, having earlier also unsuccessfully sought, and been refused, an exemption from surrendering while this petition was pending.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court used the case to clarify a recurring anomaly: under Order XXII Rule 5 of the Supreme Court Rules, 2013, an application for exemption from surrendering can only be entertained where the petitioner has actually been sentenced to a term of imprisonment, not in other situations such as cancellation or non-extension of bail. It noted the Registry had wrongly been entertaining such applications more broadly and directed that the matter be placed before the Chief Justice of India for formal instructions to the Registry. On the specific facts, since the petitioner had already surrendered following rejection of his earlier exemption application, the petition challenging the refusal to extend bail had become infructuous and was disposed of on that basis.

Lesson Learnt

The Supreme Court Rules' facility to seek "exemption from surrendering" is available strictly to persons already under a sentence of imprisonment. It cannot be used by someone merely challenging a bail-related order, and courts/registries should not conflate the two.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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