Supreme Court sets aside MP HC’s ‘Rakhi for bail’ order

Satya Prakash
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, March 18

The Supreme Court on Thursday set aside a Madhya Pradesh High Court order that required a molestation accused to get a “Rakhi” tied by the victim as a condition for grant of bail, saying it “reflects adversely on the entire judicial system of the country”.

“Even a solitary instance of such order or utterance in court reflects adversely on the entire judicial system of the country, undermining the guarantee to fair justice to all, especially to victims of sexual violence,” a Bench of Justice AM Khanwilkar and Justice S Ravindra Bhat said.

The verdict came on a PIL filed by nine women lawyers against the Madhya Pradesh High Court’s July 30, 2020, order granting bail to a molestation accused on the condition that he would request the victim to tie him a ‘Rakhi’. Alleging trivialisation of sexual offences, they had urged the top court to restrain courts across India from imposing such bail conditions.

Asking judges to avoid passing stereotype orders, it also issued directions to the National Judicial Academy to develop within three months a gender sensitisation module for training of judges, standing counsel and public prosecutors with the help of sociologists, phycologists and gender studies experts.

Issuing a slew of directions with regard to bail conditions, the top court said, “Bail conditions should not mandate, require or permit contact between the accused and the victim. Such conditions should seek to protect the complainant from any further harassment by the accused.”