Supreme Court: Bail Can Be Granted on Merits, Half Sentence Rule Before Bail Not Mandatory

The Supreme Court has ruled that courts can grant bail or suspend a sentence during an appeal if the case for grant of relief is otherwise made on merits. It clarified that the rule requiring a convict to serve half of their sentence before getting bail is not absolute. 

This decision came in response to the Narcotics Control Bureau’s appeal against a High Court order that suspended a convict’s 10-year NDPS sentence after 4.5 years.

The Court also explained that the one-half sentence rule from the Supreme Court Legal Aid Committee case was a temporary measure for reducing prison overcrowding and should not restrict judicial discretion in granting bail.