In Brief
The Supreme Court held that a High Court exceeded its jurisdiction under Section 439 CrPC (which governs bail) by ordering the Narcotic Drugs Control Bureau to pay ₹5 lakhs compensation for alleged wrongful detention of a suspect. The respondent had been arrested on heroin charges but laboratory tests proved negative. Though compensation for rights violations is permissible under Article 32, the Court clarified that bail proceedings are confined to deciding liberty—not awarding damages. Since the respondent was already released by the trial court before the High Court decided the bail application, the application had become moot. The Court partly allowed the appeal, setting aside the compensation order while leaving open other legal remedies available to the respondent.
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