Supreme Court slams trial court for delay to commence trial in 2016 case

The Supreme Court on Friday expressed its strong disapproval at a trial court's failure to frame charges and commence trial in a case of attempt to murder dating back to 2016 [Pradeep Pandurang Mane v. State of Maharashtra]..A Bench of Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra granted bail to a man in custody since April 2017 in a case registered by Maharashtra Police in December 2016."We have failed to comprehend as to why the charges could not be framed and trial commenced by the Sessions Court till now. It has been almost seven and a half years that the appellant has been languishing in jail," the Court said..The accused, Pradeep Pandurang Mane, booked under Sections 307 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 and Section 3(25) of the Arms Act, 1959, was denied bail by the Bombay High Court on April 16.The High Court had reasoned that Mane was not entitled to be released on parity with a co-accused already on bail as he was the main assailant and a gang leader with many criminal antecedents..However, the top court found that out of the six other cases against him, Mane had already been acquitted in two cases and the judgment was reserved in one other case. It added that in the remaining cases - two are which are triable by the Magistrate - he has already been granted bail by the courts. .While questioning the delay in framing of charges, the Court remarked that an accused cannot be kept behind the bars indefinitely."Keeping an accused behind bars and without trying him for the offence alleged against him, for long, itself is in breach of the procedure established by law and amounts to a punishment invading the right to life of such an accused," it added..It therefore proceeded to grant bail to Mane. "The long incarceration of the appellant, non-framing of charges and the prospect of imminent conclusion of the trial being bleak, we are of the considered opinion that he may be admitted to an order for bail," it reasoned..Advocates Sachin Patil, Sandeep Magar, Geo Joseph, Risvi Muhammad and Rishabh Agarwal appeared for the accused.Advocates Shrirang B Varma, Siddharth Dharmadhikari and Aaditya Aniruddha Pande appeared for State of Maharashtra..[Read Order]