People convicted in corruption cases will now be allowed to appeal their cases in the Supreme Court without being in jail. According to an order issued by the Supreme Court’s full bench, defendants who have been convicted in special courts and have served six months in jail can continue their appeals outside prison with the court’s permission.
The order was given by a bench comprising Chief Justice Prakashman Singh Raut, Justices Binod Sharma, Abdul Aziz Muslim, Sunil Kumar Sharma, and Nripdhwaj Niroula in the appeal case of Rudraprasad Dahal.
The Supreme Court has set certain conditions for defendants to appeal outside jail. Convicts must have served at least six months in jail, and their passports must be confiscated to prevent them from traveling abroad without the court’s consent.
What Will Be the Impact of the Supreme Court’s Decision?
This decision has set a new precedent for other defendants who were convicted by the Special Court and are now appealing their cases. Particularly, the case of former chairman Lumbadhwaj Mahat and former members Chudamani Sharma and Umeshprasad Dhakal of the Tax Settlement Commission is still under review. Though they were convicted by the Special Court, they are appealing in the Supreme Court. Now, this ruling allows them and others like them to continue their appeals outside jail.
Currently, around four hundred corruption cases are being considered by the Supreme Court, with a hundred of them involving major corruption charges.
The Supreme Court based its decision on Section 137 of the Criminal Procedure Code, 2074. According to the law, if a defendant fails to post bail, the court must make a decision within six months. If the court fails to decide within this period, the defendant may be released from custody and allowed to continue their case outside jail, based on the court’s discretion.
The Supreme Court clearly stated that if the court fails to deliver a decision within six months, detaining a defendant unnecessarily would violate their personal freedom. The decision emphasized that where the law is clear, no further interpretation is necessary, and that a defendant’s fundamental rights should not be violated if the court cannot make a timely decision.
This ruling has opened up new possibilities for high-ranking officials convicted in corruption cases by the Special Court, such as Rudraprasad Dahal, Suresh Adhikari, and Shivraj Upadhyay, who may benefit from this legal provision.
This decision strengthens the rights of defendants convicted in corruption cases but still in the process of appealing. Now, even after a conviction, individuals can continue their appeal outside jail until the legal process is completed.
