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Somesh Chaurasia v. State of M.P. & Anr.

Criminal Appeal · 2021 INSC 349Decided 22 Jul 2021
Criminal Appeal Nos. 590-591 of 2021
Dr. Justice D.Y. Chandrachud · Justice Hrishikesh Roy

Background

The second respondent, already convicted of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment, had his sentence suspended on bail pending appeal by the Madhya Pradesh High Court. While out on bail, he was named in a fresh FIR for allegedly murdering the appellant's father, and it emerged he had two other prior murder-related convictions as well. Both the appellant (the victim's son) and the State of Madhya Pradesh sought cancellation of his bail, but the High Court declined, instead merely directing police to "investigate" the new allegation within 90 days, even as the accused evaded arrest despite a warrant, and the local investigating police appeared to shield him, reportedly due to his political connections (his spouse was a sitting MLA).

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court held this was a clear case for cancelling bail: committing another serious offence (murder) while out on bail is textbook grounds for revocation, and the High Court had seriously erred by treating the matter as a routine investigation issue rather than confronting the gravity of the new allegation and the accused's history. The Court traced how the accused evaded arrest for months despite court orders, how police filed a closure report effectively absolving him, and how he was eventually arrested only after the Supreme Court itself issued coercive directions. It cancelled the bail, ordered the accused moved to a different jail, and set aside the High Court's order. The judgment also used the case as an occasion for an extended discussion on protecting trial-court judges from political pressure, directing the Madhya Pradesh High Court to inquire into concerns raised by the trial judge about being targeted for standing up to a politically influential accused.

Lesson Learnt

Bail or suspended sentence granted after a conviction can and should be cancelled if the convict is credibly implicated in committing a fresh serious crime while on liberty, and courts, including trial judges, must be protected from political interference when they act on such evidence.

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

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