Mumbai court doesn't carry out SC bail order, apex court takes exception

The Supreme Court on Thursday took exception to a Mumbai court's action in not carrying out the apex court's May 17 bail order on the ground that the order did not indicate the bail bond amount the accused was to furnish.

Directing the Mumbai court to release one Vijay Madanlal Choudhary on bail by itself fixing the bond money, a vacation bench of Justice L. Nageswara Rao and Justice Mohan M. Shantanagoudar took exception to the subordinate court for not releasing the accused on bail.

"The trial court thinks that the Supreme Court does not know how to pass a bail order," observed Justice Rao.

The apex court said that the May 21 order of the Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Esplanade, Mumbai, "refusing to release the petitioner on bail on the ground that the bail amount has not been mentioned in our order, is not justified.

"The Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate should have realised that once an order is passed by the Supreme Court to direct for the release of the petitioner on bail and there is no mention of the bail amount, it is incumbent on the trial court to fix the amount..."

"The Mumbai court is well advised to proceed to release the petitioner on bail to his satisfaction by fixing the amount for the bail bonds."

The top court had directed the Mumbai court to release Choudhary on bail, but the order did not mention the amount of bail bond he was supposed to furnish to the trial court for effectuating the bail order.

--IANS

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