AJWARversusNIYAJ AHMAD & ANR.

356                      [2022]REPORTS
               SUPREME COURT    7 S.C.R. 356                 [2022] 7 S.C.R.


A                                    AJWAR
                                         v.
                            NIYAJ AHMAD & ANR.
                       (Criminal Appeal No. 1722 of 2022)
B                            SEPTEMBER 30, 2022
               [DR DHANANJAYA Y CHANDRACHUD AND
                        HIMA KOHLI, JJ.]
              Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 – ss. 161, 482, 173 – Bail
      – When not granted – FIR was registered against the ten accused
C
      for offence punishable u/s 147, 148, 149, 302, 307, 352 and 504
      r/w. s.34 of the IPC – The first respondent was not named in the FIR,
      his role is alleged to have emerged during the course of the
      investigation – After the investigation was completed, charge-sheet
      was filed against the accused, including the first respondent – During
D     the course of the deposition, PW 1 has adverted to the role of the
      first respondent – Bail application filed by the first respondent was
      dismissed by the Session Court – The first respondent moved the
      High Court for grant of bail – Single Judge of the High Court
      granted bail – On appeal, held: The High Court has failed to notice
      the facts bearing on the seriousness and gravity of the offence –
E
      Once the role of the first respondent has emerged during the course
      of the investigation, followed by the filing of a charge-sheet, no
      case for the grant of bail was made out – That apart, Additional
      Sessions Judge in his order adverted to the fact that the first
      respondent upon being granted bail has consistently remained absent
F     from the trial – Hence, the order passed by the High Court is hereby
      set aside – First respondent directed to surrender.
             Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 – Bail – Grant of – Points
      to be considered while granting bail – The Court is duty bound to
      consider: (i) The seriousness and gravity of the crime; (ii) The role
G     attributed to the accused; (iii) The likelihood of the witnesses being
      tampered with if bail is granted; (iv) The likelihood of the accused
      not being available for trial if bail 6 is granted; and (v) The criminal
      antecedents of the accused.
           Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 – Bail – Grant of –
H     Whether to write an elaborate or detailed judgment or not – Held:
                                     356
               AJWAR v. NIYAJ AHMAD & ANR.                               357


At the stage of deciding as to whether or not to grant bail, the Court   A
is not expected to write an elaborate or detailed judgment – However,
the reasons in support of an order granting or refusing bail must
emerge from the record and must show a due application of mind by
the Judge to the facts of the case.
      Allowing the appeal, the Court                                     B

      HELD: 1. The manner in which the Single Judge of the
High Court has disposed of the application for bail is unsatisfactory.
In determining as to whether bail should be granted in a matter
involving a serious criminal offence, the Court is duty bound to
consider: (i) The seriousness and gravity of the crime; (ii) The         C
role attributed to the accused; (iii) The likelihood of the witnesses
being tampered with if bail is granted; (iv) The likelihood of the
accused not being available for trial if bail is granted; and (v) The
criminal antecedents of the accused. In successive orders, the
Single Judge of the High Court granted bail containing the same          D
sentence, purportedly of reasons. Merely recording that the Court
has had regard to the nature of the accusation, the severity of the
punishment in the case of conviction, the nature of supporting
evidence, prima facie satisfaction of the Court in support of the
charge, reformative theory of punishment and the larger mandate
of Article 21 is not a satisfactory method for the simple reason         E
that the facts of the case have to be considered. Moreover, not
all the circumstances referred to above will weigh in the same
direction. The duty to consider the circumstances of the case
cannot be obviated by setting down legal formulations. [Paras 10
& 11][361-E-H; 362-A-C]                                                  F
       2. At the stage of deciding as to whether or not to grant
bail, the Court is not expected to write an elaborate or detailed
judgment. However, the reasons in support of an order granting
or refusing bail must emerge from the record and must show a
due application of mind by the Judge to the facts of the case. An        G
over-burdened docket is no justification for formulaic justice. This
Court, therefore, disapprove of the manner in which the Single
Judge of the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad has been
dealing with applications for bail. [Paras 13][363-D]

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358            SUPREME COURT REPORTS                         [2022] 7 S.C.R.


A            3. The High Court has failed to notice the facts bearing on
      the seriousness and gravity of the offence. The incident has led
      to the murder of two sons of the appellant as a result of firearm
      injuries. The name of the first respondent has clearly emerged
      during the course of the investigation in the statement recorded
      under Section 161 of CrPC. As a matter of fact, the cross case
B
      alleging that the first respondent was injured during the course
      of the investigation would indicate prima facie, his presence at the
      scene of the incident. Once the role of the first respondent has
      emerged during the course of the investigation, followed by the
      filing of a charge-sheet, we are clearly of the view that no case for
C     the grant of bail was made out before the High Court. The first
      respondent has undergone about two years and two months of
      custody. That apart, the Additional Sessions Judge at Meerut in
      his order dated 23 August 2022 adverted to the fact that the first
      respondent upon being granted bail has consistently remained
      absent from the trial and has sought repeated adjournments as a
D
      result of which the cross-examination of the witnesses has
      remained to be concluded. As a result, it is evident that the first
      respondent upon being released on bail has failed to cooperate
      in the expeditious disposal of the trial despite the directions given
      by the High Court in its order dated 7 April 2022. He is evading
E     the conclusion of the trial. [Para 19][365-C-G]
            Mahipal v. Rajesh Kumar (2020) 2 SCC 118 : [2019]
            14 SCR 529; Aminuddin v. State of Uttar Pradesh,
            Criminal Appeal No. 317 of 2021 decided by the
            Supreme Court – relied on.
F                             Case Law Reference
      [2019] 14 SCR 529                  relied on         Para 12
            CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION: Criminal Appeal No.
      1722 of 2022.
G            From the Judgment and Order dated 04.08.2022 of the High Court
      of Judicature for UP at Allahabad in Criminal Misc. Bail Application No.
      4555 of 2022.
            Md. Anas Chaudhary, Ms. Snehla Chaudhary, Ms. Nishat Parveen,
      Ansar Ahmad Chaudhary, Advs. for the Appellant.
H
                 AJWAR v. NIYAJ AHMAD & ANR.                                   359


      Sharan Thakur, AAG, Rajul Bhargava, Sr. Adv., Sitab Ali                  A
Chaudhary, Gufran Ali, Ms. Rubina, Sadik, Ms. Preeti Gupta, Sarvesh
Singh Baghel, Siddharth Thakur, Ms. Arushi Singh, Ms. Vanya Gupta,
Advs. for the Respondents.
        The Judgment of the Court was delivered by
        DR DHANANJAYA Y CHANDRACHUD, J.                                        B

        1. Leave granted.
      2. A Single Judge of the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad, by
an order dated 4 August 2022, directed the release of the first respondent
on bail in connection with Case Crime No 126 of 2020 registered at             C
Police Station Mundali, District Meerut, Uttar Pradesh for offences
punishable under Sections 147, 148, 149, 302, 307, 352 and 504 read
with Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code 18601.
       3. The First Information Report was registered on 19 May 2020
on the basis of the complaint of the appellant against ten accused persons,    D
namely, Nazim, Abubakar, Waseem, Aslam, Gayyur, Nadeem, Hamid,
Akram, Kadir and Danish. The allegation in the FIR is that at around
7.30 pm on the same day, the accused who had prior enmity with the
parties discriminately fired at the appellant and his sons and, as a result,
two sons of the appellant, Abdul Khaliq and Abdul Majid sustained bullet
injuries. Abdul Khaliq died on the spot, while Abdul Majid died on the         E
way to the hospital. The appellant’s nephew is alleged to have been
seriously injured during the course of the incident.
       4. The postmortem report of the deceased, Abdul Khaliq, indicates
that he had received one fire arm injury in the head and the cause of the
death was cranio-cerebral damage as a result of an ante mortem firearm         F
injury. The postmortem report of Abdul Majid indicates that he had
sustained one firearm entry wound in the abdomen and one corresponding
exit wound and the cause of death was due to shock and hemorrhage
caused by the ante mortem firearm injury.
       5. Though the first respondent was not named in the FIR, his role       G
is alleged to have emerged during the course of the investigation. In the
statement of the appellant under Section 161 of the Code of Criminal
Procedure Code 19732, he was put to question on why first respondent
1
    “IPC”
2
    “CrPC”                                                                     H
360             SUPREME COURT REPORTS                           [2022] 7 S.C.R.


A     was not named as an accused in the first information report, to which
      the appellant responded as follows:
            “I have got written the complaint by Saleem (scribe of the FIR)
            orally and told him the name of Niyaz Ahmad. Niyaz Ahmad was
            also involved in the occurrence”
B            6. After the investigation was completed, a charge-sheet was
      submitted under Section 173 CrPC on 23 June 2020 against the accused,
      including the first respondent, for offences punishable under Sections
      147, 148, 149, 352, 302, 307 and 504 read with Section 34 of IPC. The
      charge-sheet was submitted against eight accused, seven of whom were
C     named in the FIR, while the name of the first respondent was added
      later. Three other accused were not found to be involved after
      investigation and thus, charge sheet was not filed against them.
              7. Cognizance has been taken and the case has been committed
      to the Sessions Court where it has been registered as Sessions Trial No
D     574 of 2020 which is pending in the court of the Additional Sessions
      Judge, Court No 15, Meerut. Charges have been framed. The evidence
      of the informant, PW 1, has been recorded. During the course of the
      deposition, PW 1 has adverted to the role of the first respondent. The
      first bail application filed by the first respondent was dismissed on 29
      July 2021 because it was not pressed. The second application for bail
E     filed by the first respondent was dismissed by the Sessions Court on 16
      December 2021 in view of the seriousness of the offence and the fact
      that there is prior enmity between the factions. The appellant moved the
      High Court under Section 482 of CrPC for expeditious conclusion of the
      trial. By an order dated 7 May 2022, the High Court directed the Sessions
F     Court to conclude the trial expeditiously, preferably within a period of six
      months. The first respondent moved the High Court for grant of bail
      which has resulted in the impugned order dated 4 August 2022.
            8. While granting bail, the Single Judge of the High Court has
      observed as follows:
G           “Having heard the submissions of learned counsel of both sides,
            nature of accusation and severity of punishment in case of
            conviction, nature of supporting evidence, prima facie satisfaction
            of the Court in support of the charge, reformative theory of
            punishment. and considering larger mandate of the Article 21 of
            the Constitution of India and the dictum of Apex Court in the case
H
                   AJWAR v. NIYAJ AHMAD & ANR.                                   361
               [DR DHANANJAYA Y CHANDRACHUD, J.]

       of Dataram Singh v. State of U.P. and another, (2018) 3 sec 22,           A
       without expressing any view on the merits of the case, I find it to
       be a case of bail.
       Considering the facts and circumstances of the case, I find it to
       be a fit case for bail.”
       9. At the outset, it needs to be noted that this Court has had occasion   B
to peruse a succession of orders by the same Judge of the High Court of
Judicature at Allahabad (which were challenged in Special leave Petitions
before this Court) containing identical reasons as recorded above for
the grant of bail. As a matter of fact, in the counter affidavit, which has
been filed by the first respondent, the fact that similar orders have been       C
passed by the Single Judge has been relied upon though with the
submission that the first respondent should not be penalized for the High
Court’s failure to record adequate reasons. The first respondent in the
course of his counter affidavit states as follows:
       “...In fact, the present case is not the only case, in which so called    D
       reasons are not assigned by the Hon’ble High Court while granting
       bail. There are many other cases also in which the same or similar
       orders were passed by the Hon’ble High Court and perhaps will
       be passed in future, as well. Therefore, the Respondent No.1
       may not be penalized for something on which he has no control at
       all and it is the judicial discretion of the Hon’ble High Court to        E
       give reasons or not to give reasons while granting bail...”
      10. The manner in which the Single Judge of the High Court has
disposed of the application for bail is unsatisfactory. In determining as to
whether bail should be granted in a matter involving a serious criminal
offence, the Court is duty bound to consider:                                    F
       (i)      The seriousness and gravity of the crime;
       (ii)     The role attributed to the accused;
       (iii)    The likelihood of the witnesses being tampered with if bail
                is granted;                                                      G
       (iv)     The likelihood of the accused not being available for trial if
                bail is granted; and
       (v)      The criminal antecedents of the accused.

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362                SUPREME COURT REPORTS                        [2022] 7 S.C.R.


A            11. In successive orders, the Single Judge of the High Court granted
      bail containing the same sentence, purportedly of reasons. Merely
      recording that the Court has had regard to the nature of the accusation,
      the severity of the punishment in the case of conviction, the nature of
      supporting evidence, prima facie satisfaction of the Court in support of
      the charge, reformative theory of punishment and the larger mandate of
B
      Article 21 is not a satisfactory method for the simple reason that the
      facts of the case have to be considered. Moreover, not all the
      circumstances referred to above will weigh in the same direction. The
      duty to consider the circumstances of the case cannot be obviated by
      setting down legal formulations.
C              12. In Mahipal v. Rajesh Kumar3, a two-Judge Bench observed:
               “25. Merely recording “having perused the record” and “on the
               facts and circumstances of the case” does not subserve the purpose
               of a reasoned judicial order. It is a fundamental premise of open
               justice, to which our judicial system is committed, that factors
D              which have weighed in the mind of the Judge in the rejection or
               the grant of bail are recorded in the order passed. Open justice is
               premised on the notion that justice should not only be done, but
               should manifestly and undoubtedly be seen to be done. The duty
               of Judges to give reasoned decisions lies at the heart of this
E              commitment. Questions of the grant of bail concern both liberty
               of individuals undergoing criminal prosecution as well as the
               interests of the criminal justice system in ensuring that those who
               commit crimes are not afforded the opportunity to obstruct justice.
               Judges are duty-bound to explain the basis on which they have
               arrived at a conclusion.
F
               27. Where an order refusing or granting bail does not furnish the
               reasons that inform the decision, there is a presumption of the
               nonapplication of mind which may require the intervention of this
               Court.”

G            In Aminuddin v. State of Uttar Pradesh4, a two-Judge Bench
      of this Court of which allowed the appeal filed against the judgment of
      the High Court granting bail. The Single Judge of the Allahabad High
      Court had disposed the bail application with the same reasoning as

      3
          (2020) 2 SCC 118
      4
H         Criminal Appeal No. 317 of 2021
                 AJWAR v. NIYAJ AHMAD & ANR.                                   363
             [DR DHANANJAYA Y CHANDRACHUD, J.]

extracted above in this case. The following observations were made on          A
the reasoning of the High Court :
      “8. In the present case, the High Court has merely observed that
      bail was being granted after considering the submissions and having
      regard to the “larger mandate of Article 21”. There can be no
      manner of doubt that the protection of personal liberty under Article    B
      21 is a constitutional value which has to be respected by the High
      Court, as indeed by all courts. Equally, in a matter such as the
      present, where a serious offence of murder has taken place, the
      liberty of the accused has to be necessarily balanced with the
      public interest in the administration of criminal justice system which
      requires that a person who is accused of a crime is held to              C
      account.”
       13. At the stage of deciding as to whether or not to grant bail, the
Court is not expected to write an elaborate or detailed judgment. However,
the reasons in support of an order granting or refusing bail must emerge
from the record and must show a due application of mind by the Judge           D
to the facts of the case. An over-burdened docket is no justification for
formulaic justice. We, therefore, disapprove of the manner in which the
Single Judge of the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad has been
dealing with applications for bail.
      14. In the above facts, we would have considered remanding the           E
proceedings back to the High Court. However, during the course of
hearing, elaborate submissions have been addressed before this Court
on whether or not the grant of bail was justified.
       15. Certain significant aspects which bear on the issue as to
whether bail ought to be granted in the facts of the present case need to      F
be elaborated after considering the submissions of the counsel appearing
on behalf of the rival parties.
      16. On behalf of the appellant, it has been submitted that:
      (i)     Two sons of the appellant have been murdered in the course
                                                                               G
              of the incident;
      (ii)    The role of the first respondent has emerged during the
              course of the statements which were recorded under Section
              161 CrPC;
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364                SUPREME COURT REPORTS                         [2022] 7 S.C.R.


A           (iii)    In the course of his deposition, the appellant as PW1 has
                     specifically adverted to the role of the first respondent in
                     the course of the incident;
            (iv)     Having due regard to the nature and gravity of the offence,
                     there is no justification for the grant of bail, particularly
B                    when the role of the first respondent has been adverted to
                     not only by the appellant but by other witnesses in the course
                     of their statements recorded under Section 161 CrPC in
                     the counter case filed by the wife of the first respondent
                     FIR in Case Crime No 361 of 2020; and
C           (v)      Though the trial was expedited by the High Court, by its
                     order dated 7 April 2022, repeated adjournments have been
                     sought by the first respondent to avoid an expeditious trial,
                     to which a reference has been made by the Trial Court in
                     an order dated 23 August 2022. The first respondent is
                     avoiding the trial.
D
            17. Supporting the submissions of the appellant, it has been urged
      on behalf of the State of Uttar Pradesh that, in the present case, the
      High Court has erred in granting bail without having due regard to the
      following circumstances, namely:

E           (i)      The nature and gravity of the crime;
            (ii)     The role attributed to the first respondent in the deposition
                     of PW 1 and even prior thereto in the statements which
                     were recorded during the course of the investigation;
            (iii)    The recovery made of five country made pistols;
F
            (iv)     The postmortem reports which indicate that the death was
                     caused due to gun-shot injuries suffered in the head and
                     abdomen, respectively; and
            (v)      The criminal antecedents of the first respondent.
G           18. On behalf of the first respondent, it has been submitted that:
            (i)      A cross case was sought to be registered at the behest of
                     the wife of the first respondent;
            (ii)     Eventually, an FIR in Case Crime No 361 of 2020 was
                     registered on 21 November 2020, inter alia, for offences
H
                  AJWAR v. NIYAJ AHMAD & ANR.                                   365
              [DR DHANANJAYA Y CHANDRACHUD, J.]

               punishable under Sections 147, 148, 149, 452, 323, 307, 504      A
               and 506 read with Section 34 of IPC;
      (iii)    The FIR was registered on the directions of the Judicial
               Magistrate;
      (iv)     A closure report was submitted by the Police on two
               occasions. The Magistrate by an order dated 31 August            B
               2021 declined to accept the closure report and directed
               further investigation; and
      (v)     The first respondent suffered a gun-shot injury during the
              course of the incident and the injury report would support
              the cross case which has been registered on the information       C
              provided by his wife.
       19. The High Court has failed to notice the facts bearing on the
seriousness and gravity of the offence. The incident has led to the murder
of two sons of the appellant as a result of firearm injuries. The name of
the first respondent has clearly emerged during the course of the               D
investigation in the statement recorded under Section 161 of CrPC. As a
matter of fact, the cross case alleging that the first respondent was
injured during the course of the investigation would indicate prima facie,
his presence at the scene of the incident. Once the role of the first
respondent has emerged during the course of the investigation, followed         E
by the filing of a charge-sheet, we are clearly of the view that no case
for the grant of bail was made out before the High Court. The first
respondent has undergone about two years and two months of custody.
That apart, the Additional Sessions Judge at Meerut in his order dated
23 August 2022 adverted to the fact that the first respondent upon being
granted bail has consistently remained absent from the trial and has            F
sought repeated adjournments as a result of which the cross-examination
of the witnesses has remained to be concluded. As a result, it is evident
that the first respondent upon being released on bail has failed to cooperate
in the expeditious disposal of the trial despite the directions given by the
High Court in its order dated 7 April 2022. He is evading the conclusion        G
of the trial.
      20. We accordingly allow the appeal and set aside the impugned
order of the Single Judge dated 4 August 2022 enlarging the first
respondent on bail.
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366              SUPREME COURT REPORTS                        [2022] 7 S.C.R.


A            21. The first respondent is granted two weeks’ time to surrender.
             22. We also clarify that any observations made in the order shall
      not affect the merits of the trial.
             23. Pending application, if any, stands disposed of.
B
      Ankit Gyan                                                    Appeal allowed.
      (Assisted by : Rahul Rathi, LCRA)




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