SRINAGAR: The High Court of Jammu Kashmir and Ladakh has suspended the sentence of a 78-year-old man convicted in a rape case and granted him bail pending the disposal of his appeal, observing that prolonged incarceration, coupled with advanced age and serious health conditions, justified the relief.
Justice Mohammad Yousuf Wani allowed the bail application of convict Khurshid Ahmad, who was sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment under Section 376 of the Ranbir Penal Code (RPC) in connection with FIR No. 191/2006 registered at Handwara Police Station.
The court held that the appellant had already spent more than six years in prison and that his criminal appeal, pending since March 2021, was unlikely to be heard in the near future. It also noted that Ahmad was suffering from multiple age-related ailments.
In his order, Justice Wani observed that Section 430 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) empowers appellate courts to suspend the execution of a sentence and release a convict on bail while an appeal is pending, provided reasons are recorded in writing.
The court said that although suspension of sentence is a discretionary power, appellate courts must consider whether there are substantial grounds for granting relief and whether there has been an unreasonable delay in deciding the appeal.
The judgment also took note of the fact that a co-convict in the case had already been granted bail on medical grounds. The court observed that continued detention without a timely determination of the appeal would impinge upon the appellant’s right to personal liberty guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution.
Allowing the application, the High Court suspended Ahmad’s sentence and directed his release on bail on furnishing a personal bond and a surety bond of Rs 1 lakh each.
The bail is subject to several conditions, including that the appellant must appear before the court whenever required, refrain from engaging in any criminal activity, and shall not leave India without prior permission of the court.
