Accused in Custody for Over Five Years; Supreme Court Seeks Accountability Over Pending Order
NEW DELHI, SEPTEMBER 23 :
The Supreme Court of India has expressed strong disapproval over the prolonged delay in deciding a bail application before the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh, noting that the matter has remained pending for more than 14 months after being reserved for orders.
A Bench comprising Justice Ujjwal Bhuyan and Justice Atul S. Chandurkar took note of the fact that the accused had already remained in custody for more than five years.
According to the proceedings, the bail application was heard by the High Court on July 1, 2025, following which the matter was reserved for orders. However, despite the passage of over 14 months, the order on the application had not been pronounced.
The Supreme Court had earlier sought a status report from the Registrar General of the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh regarding the pending bail plea. The report confirmed that the matter had been reserved for orders on July 1, 2025, and that the decision was still awaited.
The apex court recorded its disappointment over the manner in which the bail application had been kept pending, observing that such a prolonged delay after reservation of the matter was not acceptable.
The Bench, however, made it clear that it was not examining the merits of the bail application. It observed that the High Court was free to decide the plea on its merits, either by allowing or rejecting it.
At the same time, the Supreme Court stressed that keeping a bail matter pending for more than 14 months after reserving it for orders was “unacceptable”, prompting the apex court to intervene in the matter.
In view of the prolonged pendency, the Supreme Court issued notice and stayed further proceedings in the bail application.
The Court also directed that a copy of its order be forwarded to the Registrar General of the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh, who has been asked to place the same before the Chief Justice of the High Court.
The matter has been listed for September 23, 2026.
The petitioner was represented by Ranjeet Kumar, Simanta Kumar, Prakash Kumar Singh, Sushma Kumari and Mithlesh Kumar, Advocate-on-Record.
The Supreme Court’s official records are the relevant primary source for its orders and proceedings.(KNC)