SRINAGAR: The Jammu Kashmir and Ladakh High Court has granted interim bail to former police inspector Vivek Bassan in a case relating to the death of his wife, Neha Kumari, allowing him to remain out of custody until the final disposal of his pending bail application, citing the medical condition of his 82-year-old father and the dependence of his 12-year-old son on his grandfather.
Justice Rahul Bharti passed the order on October 23, 2026, after considering the circumstances cited by Bassan in support of his plea for temporary release. The relief has been made conditional on his regular appearance before the trial court and the furnishing of personal and surety bonds to the satisfaction of the Additional Sessions Judge, Jammu, and the Superintendent of District Jail, Amphalla.
The court observed that Bassan’s continued detention had affected two members of his family — his elderly father and his minor son — who depended on each other’s support in his absence.
“The petitioner’s state of custody, as an undertrial is having its adverse effects on two lives, that is of the petitioner’s father as well as his son,” Justice Bharti observed.
The court further held that the presumption of innocence could not, by itself, be used to deny the relief sought. “This Court can deny interim bail in favour of the petitioner only by reserving the presumption of innocence till proven guilty viz-a-viz the petitioner but that luxury is not legally available to any court including this Court,” the order stated.
Bassan had approached the High Court seeking ad interim bail while his main bail application remained pending. His counsel, senior advocate Aseem Kumar Sawhney, assisted by advocates Harsh Singh, M. Kashif Malik, Aman Sharma and Tehseena Bukhari, argued that his conduct during the trial had been bona fide, pointing out that he had previously been granted interim bail on several occasions for specific contingencies.
The petitioner’s latest plea was based on the health condition of his 82-year-old father, who, according to the application, was also looking after Bassan’s son. The court noted that the child, who was eight years old when the trial court had earlier considered the family circumstances, was now 12 and remained dependent on his grandfather for day-to-day care.
The Central Bureau of Investigation’s Anti-Corruption Branch, Jammu, was represented by advocate Nazia Fazal, appearing on behalf of senior advocate Monika Kohli.
The case stems from the death of Neha Kumari on February 26, 2018, when she allegedly sustained a fatal gunshot injury involving Bassan’s service weapon. At the time, Bassan was serving as an inspector in the Jammu and Kashmir Police and was deputed to the Chief Minister’s Security.
An FIR was initially registered at Pacca Danga Police Station, Jammu, on May 18, 2018, before the case was taken over by the CBI’s Anti-Corruption Branch, Jammu, under a separate case number dated March 26, 2019. The original police report invoked Sections 498-A and 304-B of the Ranbir Penal Code and Section 30 of the Arms Act, 1959.
However, the Additional Sessions Judge, Jammu, framed charges against Bassan on February 18, 2022, under Section 302 of the Ranbir Penal Code, along with Sections 304-B and 498-A of the code and Section 27(3) of the Arms Act, 1959.
The prosecution had cited 88 witnesses, of whom 81 had reportedly been examined by the time the High Court considered the interim bail application.
Bassan had previously been granted interim bail by the trial court on February 2, 2026, for one month, until March 3, 2026. That was the last such relief granted by the trial court. His main bail application, filed on August 23, 2024, was rejected on July 9, 2026, following which he approached the High Court with the present bail petition on September 29, 2026.
Justice Bharti allowed the interim relief through the application registered as CrlM No. 2023/2026 and directed that the main bail petition, Bail Application No. 223/2026, be listed on November 30, 2026.
The order does not decide the merits of the main bail application, which remains pending before the High Court.
