Karnataka High Court Rules Against Mandatory Live GPS Tracking as Bail Condition

The Karnataka High Court held that an accused cannot be forced to share their mobile phone's live GPS location with investigating officers as a condition for bail.

Justice M Nagaprasanna ruled that while standard conditions remain valid, continuous electronic surveillance through location tracking crosses the boundary of permissible legal restrictions.

The ruling came during a plea for the relaxation of bail conditions for an individual accused of extortion. Although the petitioner’s prayer was noted as vague, the Court proactively quashed the requirement to keep mobile location services active.

The Court emphasized that such a mandate is not a sustainable condition for bail.

[Shashi Kumar v. State of Karnataka]