What the court has to bear in mind is not only the rights and liberties of the accused but also the threat to safety of civil society when deciding the bail pleas of persons accused of terrorist activities, said the High Court of Karnataka.
“The argument of possible threat to the witnesses also cannot be casually discounted. This apart, there are protected witnesses too, who are waiting to depose in the criminal prosecution; it is the duty of the court to ensure their safety as well,” the court observed.
A Division Bench comprising Justice Krishna S. Dixit and Justice Pradeep Sing Yerur made these observations while rejecting the second petition seeking bail filed by one Imran Ahmed, 40, an accused in the criminal case registered in connection with large-scale violence at K.G Halli-D.J. Halli localities of Bengaluru city on August 11, 2020.
Imran was one of the several accused persons chargesheeted by the National Investigation Agency under Sections 15, 16, 18, and 20 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967.
“We are conscious to the possible societal implications should the accused of the kind be enlarged from confinement. We are of the considered view that cause of justice would be served more by continuing him in confinement than setting him free,” the Bench observed.
‘Expeditiously tried’
However, the Bench hastened to add that case against the petitioner and other accused “needs to be expeditiously tried since there are several accused persons, who have suffered rejection of their bail petitions and as a consequence, are continuing in judicial custody.”
“They have a fundamental right to speedy justice, cannot be lost sight of. In our view, this is a fit case for speedy trial, if possible, on a day-to-day basis. We are also aware of the burden that the learned trial judge of special court shoulders,” the Bench observed.
