Expressing serious concern over delays in pending trials under special laws, the Supreme Court suggested the
establishment of dedicated courts across the country for exclusive hearing of such cases.
The Bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice NK Singh observed on Friday that these courts would not be assigned any other civil or criminal matters.
They would only hear cases under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA), and other such statutes in different States.
Noting that the cases entrusted to NIA were also primarily related to heinous crimes, the top court of the country said the only effective way to reduce this backlog would be the establishment of dedicated courts for special statutes.
The Bench made these observations on a bail petition of a person arrested in a 2019 case on allegations that he was involved in Naxalite activities.
The petitioner sought bail on the grounds that there was a substantial delay in the trial against him.
He was booked for offences under the Indian Penal Code, the Indian Explosives Act, the Maharashtra Police Act, the UAPA and the MCOC Act.
The Counsel for the accused submitted on May 22 that he had moved the Bombay High Court for bail first in 2022. However, the High Court was not inclined to grant bail and ordered that the trial be concluded expeditiously instead.
In April 2024, the accused again moved the High Court for bail on the ground of delay in trial. Dismissing the petition, the High Court observed that a mere delay in the trial of serious offences, by itself, could not constitute a ground for granting bail to the accused.
In the peculiar facts of the present case, delay alone was insufficient to justify releasing the accused man on bail.
The High Court further clarified that it was open to the trial to proceed with the case against the accused. It directed the trial court to frame charges and conclude the trial as expeditiously as possible.
The Counsel contended that when the accused approached the Special Judge with a second bail application, the trial court remarked that it was overburdened with work.
Following multiple bail rejections, the accused moved an application before the trial court seeking day-to-day trial hearings, which was opposed by the prosecution.
The Counsel submitted that the accused could not be made to suffer prolonged incarceration, only owing to the lack of judicial infrastructure or administrative inefficiency. It was pointed out that not a single witness has been examined in the past five years and ten months.
The Supreme Court observed that the present case was not an exceptional one, as there were hundreds of such trials pending across various parts of the country.
It observed that the only recourse was the establishment of dedicated courts to exclusively deal with UAPA and MCOCA cases.
The Bench, however, said the creation of such special courts was a policy decision that fell within the executive domain. The process should be undertaken in consultation with the Chief Justice of the respective High Courts of each State, it added.
Appearing for the National Investigation Agency (NIA), the Additional Solicitor General (ASG) on Friday sought a time of four weeks to obtain instructions on the issue.
The Apex Court agreed to the request and listed the matter for further hearing on July 18.
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