'Extremely surprised': SC on Patna HC judge opting out of hearing year after reserving order on bail plea

The Supreme Court has questioned why a Patna High Court judge had reserved the order on an anticipatory bail plea for nearly a year before recusing from the case. Reports ETV Bharat's Sumit Saxena.

New Delhi:The Supreme Court has expressed surprise over a Patna High Court judge not delivering an order on an anticipatory bail plea for almost a year before recusing from the case without rendering any decision.

A bench comprising justices Bela M Trivedi and Satish Chandra Sharma said that during the hearing, it had been brought to the apex court's notice by the counsel for the petitioner that the high court judge Justice Sandeep Kumar had heard the matter and reserved the same for orders on April 7, 2022, and had released the matter as per the order dated April 4, 2023, almost after one year.

“We are extremely surprised as to how the order on the petition seeking anticipatory bail could be kept pending for one year. The Registrar General of the High Court of Judicature at Patna may get the details of the matter and submit the report before January 8, 2024," said the bench, in its order passed on November 28. The petitioner Rajanti Devi moved the apex court through advocate Siddhartha Jha.

The apex court has scheduled the matter on January 8, 2024, for compliance only. However, the petitioner sought permission to withdraw the petition, which was allowed by the bench. “After arguing for some time and on expressing our reservation in entertaining the petition, learned counsel appearing for the petitioner seeks permission to withdraw the present petition. Permission sought is granted. The Special Leave Petition is dismissed as withdrawn," the apex court said in its order.

The petitioner had moved the high court seeking anticipatory bail plea in connection with the offences under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA). After the first bench released the matter, another bench heard it and rejected the plea in July 2023. The high court had observed that under section 45 of the PMLA 2002, the petitioner had not made a case for the grant of anticipatory bail.