Onus on Uttar Pradesh to ensure undertrials allowed bail are released, says Supreme Court
Of the 264 undertrial prisoners allowed bail, 106 had to continue behind bars for various reasons, including their inability to provide financial security or a guarantor to back them
- ✓Of the 264 undertrial prisoners allowed bail, 106 had to continue behind bars for various reasons, including their inability to provide financial security or a guarantor to back them
- ✓Senior advocate Gaurav Aggarwal, the court’s amicus curiae, submitted that this was the situation in only 20 districts.
- ✓Statistics from the other 55 districts of Uttar Pradesh on undertrial prisoners forced to stay back in jails due to their impoverishment were yet unknown.
- ✓The court listed the suo motu case, ‘In re policy strategy for grant of bail’, for hearing in January 2027.
Senior advocate Gaurav Aggarwal, the court’s amicus curiae, submitted that this was the situation in only 20 districts. Statistics from the other 55 districts of Uttar Pradesh on undertrial prisoners forced to stay back in jails due to their impoverishment were yet unknown.
Uttar Pradesh counsel assured the court that “the needful would be done within a reasonable time”. The court had earlier tasked the District Legal Services Authorities in Uttar Pradesh to reach out to these prisoners and provide them legal aid.
“Merely because private lawyers have been engaged, the assistance from the District Legal Services Authority counsel cannot be denied… There cannot be any differentiation between the undertrial prisoners who have the assistance of the District Legal Services Authority and those who have engaged private counsel,” the court reasoned.
“In any case, the onus lies on the State to make sure that these persons are released from custody,” the Bench underscored. The court listed the suo motu case, ‘In re policy strategy for grant of bail’, for hearing in January 2027.
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| Issuing Authority | The Hindu National |
|---|---|
| Topic Category | GOVERNANCE |
| Jurisdiction | All India / National |
| Publication Date | 10 November 2026 |