Courts can't stay graft, criminal case trials for over 6 months: SC

The Supreme Court today ruled that the proceedings in any pending trial relating to graft or criminal cases should not be stayed from now on by an appellate court for more than six months, without a speaking order.

Observing that the "cancer of corruption" has eaten into the vitals of the State and needed to be nipped in the bud, it had a word of caution for the higher appellate courts, saying the power to stay the trial proceedings has to be exercised with "restraint" especially in corruption cases.

A bench of Justices Adarsh Kumar Goel, Navin Sinha and R F Nariman laid down the time limit for the stay of proceedings, saying the legislative mandate of expeditious disposal of a trial should be respected.

It ruled that a stay of proceedings by an appellate court in any pending trial related to either corruption or civil or criminal cases, shall not operate for more than six months from today itself, unless the restraint is extended by a speaking order.

The ruling came on a question of law as to whether a high court has the jurisdiction to entertain an appeal against an order framing charge by the trial court.

Answering the question in the affirmative, the special bench of the top court said "We have thus no hesitation in concluding that the High Court has jurisdiction in appropriate case to consider the challenge against an order framing charge and also to grant stay."