[Release of undertrials] Telangana High Court dispenses with need for certified bail order copy

The Telangana High Court has done away with the requirement to have certified order copies transmitted to prisons in bail cases, and directed that order copies downloaded from the High Court website shall suffice (V. Bharath Kumar vs. The State of Telangana)..Justice Lalitha Kanneganti passed order stating that an alternative mechanism was required to address the plight of undertrials suffering due to delays in the communication of orders. Courts must adopt a progressive approach by adopting innovative methods to address this, the Judge added.“The Hon'ble Apex Court has expressed the concern that serious deficiency in the criminal judicial system is the delay in communication of orders, which we need to address on war-footing, because it touches upon the human liberty of under-trialers/convicts," the High Court noted. .Justice Kanneganti observed that bail petitions are heard by courts as expeditiously as possible and orders passed immediately. The difficulty lies in dispatching these orders and sometimes the process takes days. Therefore, the need for the use of technology was emphasised.“In this advanced age of technology, we should make use of technology in improving the administration of justice. It will enhance the efficiency and we will be able to achieve the goal of giving timely justice to the needy."Therefore, to furnish an order copy, as opposed to simply stressing the fact that an accused has an indefensible right to bail.The following directions were thus passed by the Court:“(a) Parties Advocates shall download the order copy from the High Court's Website along with case details which are available in the case status information.(b) While filing the memo on behalf of accused for furnishing sureties, the advocate shall state in the Memo that he / she has downloaded the order copy from the High Court's Website. The Administrative Officer Chief Ministerial Officer of the Court concerned shall verify the order from the High Court's Website and make an endorsement to that effect and then shall place the same before the Court.(c) The Public Prosecutor shall also obtain necessary instructions in this regard and assist the Court.(d) The Presiding Officer, on the same day, shall dispose of the same and dispatch the release order to the jail authorities concerned forthwith through e-mail or any other electronic mode.(e) In cases of anticipatory bail, the burden to verify the authenticity of the copy is on the Station House Officer concerned and if necessary, he should obtain necessary instructions from the Public Prosecutor's Office and complete the process on the same day expeditiously as per law.(f) The jail authorities on receipt of the release order shall release the accused forthwith.”.In cases of anticipatory bail, the burden to verify the authenticity of the order would be on the Station House Officer (SHO), the Court said..The High Court in its order, underscored the importance of an individual’s personal liberty, stating that any denial of such a right results in the undermining of public confidence in the judiciary.“Our criminal justice system always gives paramount consideration to the protection of the rights of the accused.”.Justice Kanneganti further ordered that should difficulties be faced in implementing the Court’s directions, the same shall be brought to the Public Prosecutor’s notice and then be placed before the Court on December 22..[Read Order]