Supreme Court calls for special courts to exclusively hear UAPA, MCOCA cases

The Supreme Court on Friday flagged concern over delays in pending trials under special laws like the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA ) across the country [Kailash Ramchandani vs State Of Maharashtra]..A bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice NK Singh observed that the only effective way to reduce this backlog is to establish dedicated courts that would exclusively hear such cases, and which are not assigned any other civil or criminal matters."There are hundreds of trials pending in different parts of the country under the special statutes like UAPA, MCOCA....and other statutes in different States. The cases which are entrusted to NIA are also primarily related to heinous crimes.....The only recourse can be the establishment of dedicated courts (for) trial under special statutes without giving them any other civil or criminal case," the Court observed..The Court was hearing a bail plea by a person who was arrested in a 2019 case on allegations that he was involved in Naxalite activities. He had sought bail on the ground that there was a substantial delay in the trial against him.He stands accused of committing offences under the Indian Penal Code, the Indian Explosives Act, the Maharashtra Police Act, the UAPA and the MCOC Act..During yesterday's hearing, counsel for the accused submitted that he had moved the 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, he again moved the Bombay High Court for bail on the ground of delay in trial. The High Court dismissed this plea as well, observing that a mere delay in the trial of serious offences cannot, by itself, constitute a ground for granting bail to the accused. The Court held that, 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 is 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..It was further submitted that when the accused man 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. However, the same was opposed by the prosecution.The accused man contended that he cannot be made to suffer prolonged incarceration like this, 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 is not an exceptional one, as there are hundreds of such trials pending across various parts of the country. It observed that dedicated courts set up to only try UAPA and MCOCA cases are needed to tackle the issue. The issue was flagged in an earlier order passed on May 9 as well, when the Court observed. "When trials are to take place under Special Laws, it is imperative on the Union or States to establish specialized Courts with adequate infrastructure for ensuring speedy trial, for achieving the legislative object of the statute."However, the Court on Friday clarified that the creation of such special courts is a policy decision that falls within the executive domain. This process should be undertaken in consultation with the Chief Justice of the respective High Courts of each State, the top court added. The Additional Solicitor General (ASG) representing the National Investigation Agency (NIA) yesterday requested four weeks of time to obtain instructions on the issue.The Court granted time and listed the case for further hearing on July 18. .[Read Order].[Read Live Coverage]