Supreme Court grants Andrabi bail, criticizes earlier Umar Khalid denial
India
The Supreme Court just called out an earlier decision that denied bail to Umar Khalid, who is facing charges in the Delhi riots case.
The judges pointed out that even with strict laws, "Principle of Bail is rule and jail is exception is applicable even under special law like UAPA," and made this clear while granting bail to Syed Iftikhar Andrabi, who has spent more than five years in jail.
Court stresses liberty and consistent decisions
The court stressed that everyone's right to liberty is protected by the Constitution and said keeping someone locked up for a long time is not reason enough to deny bail.
They also reminded the division bench to stick with established legal principles: basically, decisions should be fair and consistent.