In Brief
This judgment addresses bail for convicts awaiting appeal at the High Court level. The Supreme Court held that if a convict has served eight years of actual sentence while an appeal is pending, bail should ordinarily be granted subject to exceptions for heinous crimes, repeat offenders, and habitual criminals. The Court directed the High Court to establish a prompt mechanism for considering such bail applications and to place before the Supreme Court its policy strategy within four weeks. The petitions were transferred to the High Court for urgent consideration, and a Suo Moto petition was to be registered to facilitate further examination of the problem.
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