Full Judgment
Arun Kumar, J.
(1) The petitioner has filed the present application under Section 439 of the Code of Criminal Procedure for grant of bail. He is undergoing trial for offences under Sections 3, 5 and 9 of the Official Secrets Act of 1923 read with Section 120B of the Indian Penal Code.
(2) The petitioner was arrested on 23rd August 1989 on the basis of a complaint lodged against him by the Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Branch), New Delhi. Thus, the petitioner is in custody for nearly five years. The charge was framed on 4th April 1990 and since then the case is proceeding in prosecution evidence which has not been completed so far.
(3) The present application was moved about two years ago and has been pending since then. The learned counsel for the petitioner has sought bail on the following ground- (a) the petitioner has been in custody for nearly five years and the trial is yet to take long time before it can be concluded : (b) various tragedies have befallen the family of the petitioner since his arrest and his family is in total shambles : (c) no case is made out against the petitioner. In the alternative it is urged that at best the petitioner can be convicted for offence under Section 5 of the Official Secrets Act for which the maximum punishment is three years. The petitioner is already behind bars for nearly five years.
(4) On the other hand learned counsel for the State has emphasised the serious nature of the offence the petitioner is stated to have committed. He has referred to various paragraphs of the complaint filed against the petitioner to show the gravity of the offence alleged to have been committed by the petitioner.
(5) I have considered all aspects. The petitioner has been behind bars for nearly five years now. During his detention he has already reached the age of superannuation. There appears to be no likelihood of his being able to tamper with any evidence any more. These facts coupled with various family tragedies suffered by the petitioner, as detailed in the present petition, persuade me to entertain the present application of the petitioner for grant of bail. The family tragedies mentioned in the petition are :- A. petitioner's son Rajiv Seth became mad in November, 1989 ; B. another son of the petitioner Anup Seth left his studies in the middle. He was a student of Moti Lal Nehru College, Delhi in B.A.(Pass) Course ; C. the father of the petitioner died on 5th August,1992; D. the family has practically no support and his wife is not in a position to handle the family affairs.
(6) Coupled with the aforesaid facts this cannot be lost sight of that the petitioner has been behind bars for nearly five years now and the trial is still not complex and is likely to take sometime. So far as the question of merits of the case raised by the learned counsel for the petitioner is concerned, I do not consider it appropriate to express any opinion thereon in the present proceedings as it may prejudice the trial and final verdict.
(7) Accordingly, I grant bail to the petitioner subject to his furnishing a personal bond in the sum of Rs.50,000.00 with one surety in the like amount to the satisfaction of the trial court. The petition stands disposed of.