The courts: This section documents how courts across the country have dealt with people charged with Sedition. In terms of bail, accused have spent too many days in jail before a trial court or a High Court granted bail. Accused had to wait for an average of 50 days to get bail from a trial court, and upto 200 days for bail from a High Court.
Further, the database notes:
“In 1,386 verdicts across three courts, trial courts tended to reject bail applications more than they allowed them. At the high court, for every bail application rejected, seven were granted.”
In the case of Uttar Pradesh, 60% of bail applications at trial courts were rejected in cases related to protest, criticism, religious hate, or insults to national symbols. It was only on appeal that most bail applications were granted, with 99% of them being granted in High Courts.
In the context of reasons for rejection or grant of bail applications, it notes:
“A 32-year-old Muslim baker booked for uploading a Facebook profile photo was granted bail after three months in prison. That the accused has spent a “long time in custody” was the main reason why court granted bail.”
When it comes to trial, the time spent by accused persons from the stage of the FIR to being acquitted ranged between 209 and 3,520 days.
Source: Barandbench
