In a pivotal ruling on Friday, the Supreme Court directed that all bail applications originating from the same First Information Report (FIR) should be heard by the same judge or bench in high courts, to ensure consistency in judicial decisions.
A bench comprising Justices B R Gavai and K Vinod Chandran reinforced the directive from a July 2023 order by a three-judge bench of the apex court, emphasizing the need for uniformity in the handling of cases related to the same incident. The court clarified, “We, therefore, clarify that if in a particular high court, the bail applications are assigned to different single judges/benches, then in that event, all the applications arising out of the same FIR should be placed before one judge/one bench.”
This guidance aims to avoid divergent rulings on similar matters, which can lead to inconsistencies and legal confusion. The court acknowledged the challenges posed by the high courts’ roster system, where judges’ assignments change periodically. The bench noted that even if a judge who initially handles bail matters shifts to other duties, subsequent judges should consider the precedents set by their predecessors to maintain consistency.
The ruling came in response to a specific plea involving a bail application in the Jharkhand High Court, which had been pending for three months. The petitioner’s counsel highlighted discrepancies in the handling of bail applications within the same FIR, pointing out that different judges had managed the bail pleas of co-accused, leading to inconsistent outcomes.
The Supreme Court observed that such disparities could lead to an anomalous situation where similar cases might receive different judicial treatments, potentially resulting in unfair advantages or disadvantages to the involved parties. “In most high courts, the roster system was followed and after a particular period, the assignment of the judges change,” the bench added, suggesting that while changes are inevitable, the essence of previous rulings should be considered by new judges taking over such cases.
The court has directed the registrar (judicial) of the Supreme Court to forward a copy of its order to the registrar general of all high courts to ensure nationwide compliance.
