No chargesheet for 2 years: SC grants bail to man in UAPA case
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The Supreme Court has reportedly granted bail to a man booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) after noting that he had been kept in custody for nearly two years without a chargesheet being filed.
A bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta is said to have remarked that keeping the accused behind bars for such a long duration without completing the investigation was absolutely unjustified.
According to the case records, the matter began in 2023 when authorities alleged that individuals linked to the banned United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA-Independent), were making demands of extortion money at a rate of Rs 1 lakh per year from various tea gardens, Indian Express reported.
The accused was reportedly detained by the Assam Rifles on July 23, 2023, for allegedly carrying ₹3.25 lakh in extortion funds. An FIR was subsequently registered under IPC Sections 384 (extortion) and 107 (abetment), along with Sections 10(a)(iii) and (iv) ( member of an unlawful association) of the UAPA.
The defence pointed out to the Supreme Court that in a separate but similar case, the accused had been granted default bail because investigators failed to file the chargesheet on time.
Taking note that no chargesheet had been filed for almost two years and that there was no likelihood of the trial concluding anytime soon, the bench observed that the accused was entitled to bail. The court therefore directed his release.
Through the additional documents filed on behalf of the accused, it was pointed out to the top court that the accused has been granted default bail in another FIR for a similar offence because the charge sheet was not filed within the permitted period for the conclusion of the investigation.
The court held that the accused deserved bail as the chargesheet was not filed for almost two years from the date of his arrest and as there is no prospect of an early conclusion of the trial.