SURENDRA Vs. STATE OF UTTAR PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Leave granted.

(2.) The instant Criminal Appeal was brought to challenge the order of the Allahabad High Court (hereinafter referred to as "High Court") confirming the conviction for the charge under Sec. 302 read with Ss. 149 and 148 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (hereinafter referred to as "IPC") and sentence of life imprisonment awarded to the appellant.

(3.) On 13/8/2024, when the appeal came up for hearing, it was informed that the appellant was released on bail in furtherance to the order dtd. 15/3/2024 passed by the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Mathura. The order passed by the Chief Judicial Magistrate was in pursuance of the order dtd. 10/1/2024 of the High Court in Criminal Appeal No. 165 of 2016, titled Ganesh vs. State of U.P. The High Court in the said order had directed to release the convicts on bail in case their applications for premature release were kept pending for more than six months. It is not out of place to mention that the direction as issued in the Ganesh (Supra) was not related to the case of the appellant and the sentence served by the appellant till the date of his release was only two years and five months. After taking cognizance of these facts, explanation was sought vide orders dtd. 13/8/2024 and 3/9/2024 passed in the proceedings of this case that once the criminal appeal referred above is of different person in a different case, how the Chief Judicial Magistrate could have released the accused without any order of the Court in the appellant's case.