Supreme Court’s Bail Reform Ruling a Hope for Undertrials

Mohammad Shafi, National Vice President of the Social Democratic Party of India hails the Supreme Court’s recent directive mandating High Courts and trial courts to dispose of bail and anticipatory bail applications within two months. This landmark ruling confronts the chronic delays crippling our judicial system, which have unjustly deprived countless individuals of their fundamental right to liberty, enshrined in Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution.

India’s justice system is marred by systemic failures: over 262,000 bail applications remain pending in district courts, as per the National Judicial Data Grid (September 2025). Undertrials, constituting 76% of the 5.73 lakh prison population (India Justice Report 2025 and NCRB), languish in overcrowded jails at 131% capacity. Marginalized communities- 73% Dalits, tribals, Muslims and OBCs—bear the brunt, revealing a discriminatory underbelly. The principle of “bail as the rule, jail as the exception,” is undermined by docket overload, sluggish investigations, and inadequate judicial resources. Such delays not only violate constitutional mandates but erode public faith, perpetuating a system where the disadvantaged suffer while the influential escape scrutiny.

This directive offers a transformative path, prioritizing personal liberty, urging swift probes, and mandating mechanisms to curb pendency. If implemented, it could reduce undertrial numbers, alleviate prison overcrowding, and restore justice’s integrity. SDPI demands High Courts must enforce compliance, the government must bolster judicial infrastructure and legal aid, and Parliament should fast-track the Bail Reform Bill, 2024. Let this verdict mark a decisive step toward a just and equitable India.