MLA accused of rape loses bail

The Supreme Court on Tuesday suspended for two weeks an order passed by the Patna High Court granting bail to the RJD MLA, Rajballav Prasad, accused of raping a minor girl.

A Bench of Justices A.K. Sikri and N.V. Ramana passed this order on a special leave petition filed by the State of Bihar seeking cancellation of the bail granted to the MLA. The Bench heard Counsel for Bihar, Gopal Subramaniam and Gopal Singh and senior counsel Dushyant Dave for the MLA, Rajballav Prasad and passed this consent order.

The Bench directed the MLA to surrender before the trial court to suffer judicial custody for two weeks to enable the rape victim to give her deposition fearlessly. In the meanwhile it asked the trial court to commence recording the evidence of the prosecutix (rape victim) immediately and complete the same within two weeks. The court made it clear that the respondent MLA should not exert any pressure upon the prosecutrix or on any other witnesses and directed the matter to be listed for further hearing on November 23, when the plea for cancellation of the bail till the trial is over will be decided. The Bihar government in its appeal faulted the HC chief justice for committing judicial impropriety in granting bail to the MLA, when the bail was earlier rejected by another Bench.

The State said the trial was at a crucial stage and the MLA is accused of committing rape with a minor and has a history of several heinous cases pending against him which are at various stages of investigation and trial. The impugned order has been passed in gross violation of Section 437 Cr.P.C. Despite availability of the same Judge who had on an earlier occasion heard and rejected the bail application of the accused, a Bench headed by the Chief Justice heard and granted bail to the accused despite serious objection by the State to the hearing and disposal of the bail application.

The SLP pointed out that there is a consistent practice in the Patna High Court that the subsequent bail applications shall be listed and heard by the same bench which has earlier heard the bail application and this practice has been violated in this case. Needless to say, unless such principle is adhered to, there is enormous possibility of forum-shopping which has no sanction in law and definitely, has no sanctity. If the same is allowed to prevail, it is likely to usher in anarchy, whim and caprice and in the ultimate eventuate shake the faith in the adjudicating system. This cannot be allowed to be encouraged, the SLP said and prayed for quashing the impugned order and to cancel the bail to the MLA.