'Do not hesitate to deny freedom to the accused to make the society corruption free', Supreme Court's instruction

The Supreme Court has said that the court should not be hesitant to deny liberty to the accused if this will help to make society free from corruption. A bench led by Justices JB Pardiwala and R Mahadevan said so while rejecting a public officer's anticipatory bail plea. The court further said that corruption has very dangerous potential.

The court added that in some instances, public justice is not obtained by granting undue deference to the freedom of the accused. This was said in a comment against a Punjab and Haryana High Court order dismissing this officer's anticipatory bail. The accused was accused of extorting an illegal bribe in connection with auditing developmental work in a Gram Panchayat.

The Supreme Court said that if whatever is being said about corruption among the public is true, then it is an indication of widespread corruption in the country, and this is the main cause of the country's economic problems. The court also said that corruption, especially among government officials and political parties, is a cause of greater danger to society, which is more serious than any other crime.

The court emphasized that the presumption of innocence of the accused cannot be the only ground for granting anticipatory bail. If the accused is deprived of liberty to ensure a corruption-free society, then the court should not hesitate in doing so. Finally, the court rejected the plea of ​​​​the officer, saying that if he applied for regular bail, it would be considered on merit, but the order of the Supreme Court would not affect him.