Matter of Personal Liberty Must Be Taken Up With Utmost Speed, Says SC as It Objects to 43 Adjournments of Bail Plea
The Supreme Court has reiterated that matters involving personal liberty should be dealt with expeditiously by the courts, as it expressed strong disapproval of the Allahabad High Court adjourning a bail application as many as 43 times.
The observation came while a bench of Chief Justice B R Gavai and Justice N V Anjaria was hearing special leave petitions filed by petitioner seeking bail in connection with multiple criminal cases investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
Allowing the plea, the bench noted that the petitioner had remained in custody for over three years, including the period undergone in a connected matter. It said such delays defeat the principle of prompt consideration of bail pleas, which are directly linked to a citizen’s right to personal liberty under the Constitution.
“In the present case, the matter has been adjourned on 43 occasions. We do not appreciate the tendency of the High Court to adjourn the matters pertaining to personal liberty of a citizen on such a large number of occasions,” the bench observed.
The court added that it had repeatedly emphasized that applications relating to personal liberty must receive urgent attention.
“Time and again we have observed that the matters relating to personal liberty should be entertained by the courts with utmost speed,” the bench said.
Appearing for the CBI, Additional Solicitor General S D Sanjay strongly opposed the grant of bail at this stage.
He submitted that the Supreme Court should refrain from intervening when the application was still pending before the High Court, as granting relief during such pendency would set an undesirable precedent.
However, senior advocate Yashraj Singh Deora, representing the petitioner, relied on an earlier order of the apex court in the case of a co-accused to seek parity.
He drew attention to the Supreme Court’s order dated May 22, 2025, where the court had granted relief to a similarly placed accused despite the pendency of proceedings before the High Court.
Taking note of the submission, the bench referred to its previous order in SLP(C) No.5480/2025 passed on May 22, 2025. In that matter, the court had remarked that ordinarily it would not entertain a plea if the application was still under consideration before the High Court. However, an exception was made as the case had been adjourned 27 times.
“In the order dated 22.05.2025 passed in SLP(C) No.5480/2025, we have observed that normally we would not have entertained the matter, if the application is pending before the High Court. However, in the said matter we had granted relief taking into consideration that the matter before the High Court was adjourned on 27 occasions,” the bench recalled.
The court said the current case reflected an even more concerning picture with the matter being adjourned 43 times, far exceeding the adjournments in the earlier case.
It stressed that such repeated adjournments undermine the right to speedy adjudication, particularly in matters affecting liberty.
Having regard to these circumstances and the fact that the petitioner had been in custody for more than three and a half years, the court said it was inclined to grant bail.
The bench directed that Ramnath Mishra be released on bail in Special Case No.02/2022 arising out of FIR No.RC0072020A0004 of 2020 and Special Case No.01/2023 arising out of FIR No.RC0072020A0005 of 2020 and RC0072022A0006 of 2022, to the satisfaction of the trial court.
It further clarified that with the passing of this order, the bail application filed by the petitioner before the Allahabad High Court would stand rendered infructuous. The special leave petitions were accordingly disposed of along with any pending applications.
Case Title: Ramnath Mishra @ Ramanath Mishra Vs Central Bureau of Investigation
Date of Judgment: August 25, 2025
Bench: Chief Justice B R Gavai and Justice N V Anjaria