It is settled law that bail cannot be withheld as a punishment. Moreover, the conviction and incarceration of a person who is ultimately found guilty upon conclusion of trial can repair the wrong caused by erroneously extending the relief of interim bail but, no satisfactory reparation can be offered to a person who has been wrongly accused for unjustified incarceration at any stage of the case, if in the end a verdict of acquittal is handed down. It is equally settled law that when the court comes to the conclusion that the accused is entitled to be released on bail then in such eventuality the grant of bail cannot be made subject to any rider or condition that would render the concession of bail granted by the court as ineffective or redundant. Bail is one of the most important elements of the scheme of criminal law and its consideration is premised on the principle that an accused is presumed to be innocent until proven guilty. The primary purpose of granting bail is to ensure attendance of an accused before the court. It also enables the accused, who is presumed to be innocent, to pursue normal activities which are essential for life such as earning a livelhood or taking care of the needs of the family. When a court is satisfied that a case for grant of bail has been made out then refusal to execrise discretion in favour of releasing the accused, subject to conditions described under section 499 of the Criminal Procedure Code, 1898 (“Cr.P.C.”) would not be in conformity with the right to liberty and the fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution. The conditions described under section 499 are ordinarily sufficient to guarantee the presence of an accused before a court during the trial proceedings. Nonetheless, the court may refuse grant of bail or make it subject to conditions in order to regulate the conduct or movement of an accused. A court, for example, may be satisfied that, if released on bail, the accused would abscond or that there exists a likelihood of tampering with the evidence or influencing the witnesses. In such eventualities the court must exercise its discretion with care and caution, by balancing the scales of justice and equity. Even if bail is to be granted subject to conditions then they must not be unreasonable, disproprtionate or excessive. The foundational principles of criminal law are the presumption of innocence of an accused and that bail must not be unjustifably withheld beause it then operates as a punishment before being convicted upon conclusion of the trial. The unnecessary and unjustified incarceration of an under trial prisioner simultenously becomes a burden on the taxpayers and the already overcrowded prisons.
CIVIL PETITION NO.278 OF 2023
Muhammad Taimur Versus Chairman, National Accountability Bureau NAB Headquarters, Islamabad & others
17-04-2023
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