Can't consider acquittal in criminal history: Court

Saurabh Malik

Chandigarh, January 19

In a significant judgment liable to change the way bail pleas of accused with record are decided, the Punjab and Haryana HC has made it clear that cases, in which a person has been acquitted or discharged, FIR quashed by the courts, prosecution withdrawn or closure report filed, cannot be taken into consideration while reckoning his “criminal history”.

The judgment is significant as “criminal history” is a ground for opposing the bail plea filed by an accused. In his detailed order, Justice Anoop Chitkara asserted each bail petition filed by an accused with a criminal history threw an onerous responsibility upon the courts to act judiciously with reasonableness as arbitrariness was the antithesis of law.

The criminal history required to be taken into consideration must be of cases where the accused was convicted and all pending FIRs, wherein the bail petitioner stood arraigned as an accused.

“In reckoning the number of cases as criminal history, the prosecutions resulting in acquittal or discharge, or when courts quashed the FIR; the prosecution stands withdrawn, or prosecution filed a closure report; cannot be included,” Justice Chitkara added.

Only conviction cases to be reckoned

The criminal history required to be taken into consideration must be of cases where the accused was convicted, including the suspended sentences, and all pending first information reports, wherein the bail petitioner stood arraigned as an accused