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Lt Col Prasad Shrikant Purohit v. The State of Maharashtra

Criminal Appeal · 2017 INSC 784Decided 21 Aug 2017
Criminal Appeal No. 1448 of 2017
Justice R.K. Agrawal · Justice Abhay Manohar Sapre

Background

On 29 September 2008, a bomb blast at Malegaon, Nasik, killed six people and injured about 100 others. The appellant, an Indian Army intelligence officer, was arrested and had already spent roughly 8 years and 8 months in custody as an accused in the conspiracy, facing charges under the UAPA and other penal provisions. His bail application had been rejected by the Bombay High Court, and he appealed to the Supreme Court, pointing to inconsistencies between the chargesheets filed by the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) and the later National Investigation Agency (NIA) chargesheet, and to his claim that he had been feeding intelligence to superiors rather than conspiring.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court held that while liberty of the accused must be balanced against the security and investigational interests of the State, bail is a matter of judicial discretion that must be reasoned, not an automatic denial driven by the gravity of the charge or public sentiment. It found there were material contradictions between the ATS and NIA chargesheets that could not be resolved at the bail stage and would need to be tested at trial, and that the appellant had raised fresh grounds (the intelligence-input claim and allegations about ATS officials planting evidence) not considered in his earlier, rejected bail pleas. Combined with the prolonged pre-trial custody and the likelihood of a lengthy trial, the Court set aside the High Court's order and granted bail on strict conditions (sureties, restrictions on travel and on contacting witnesses, surrender of passport, and continued cooperation with the NIA investigation). It clarified this bail order would not influence the bail prospects of co-accused persons or the trial on merits.

Lesson Learnt

Even in serious terrorism-related cases, prolonged pre-trial detention and genuine contradictions in the prosecution's own case can justify bail: courts must give reasoned grounds either way, and the gravity of an allegation alone cannot be used to deny liberty indefinitely while a trial is pending.

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

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