The Supreme Court has reiterated that prolonged pre-trial detention cannot be permitted to degenerate into punishment without trial, in an October 16 order granting regular bail to Mahesh Chandra Joshi and Mukesh Pathak. The order was reported by Bar and Bench and Live Law on Friday, October 23.
A bench of Justices Dipankar Datta and Sheel Nagu held: "As repeatedly emphasised by this Court, prolonged pre-trial detention cannot be permitted to degenerate into punishment without trial in derogation of an undertrial's Fundamental Right to personal liberty and speedy trial guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution." The court added that the gravity of the allegations, however serious, cannot by itself eclipse all other considerations governing bail or justify indefinite pre-trial detention.
The case arises from an anti-corruption enquiry into alleged irregularities in tenders issued by Rajasthan's Public Health Engineering Department under the Jal Jeevan Mission. The prosecution alleges — and Awaaz Punjab labels this as an allegation, not a finding — that forged documents were used to secure contracts worth Rs 979.45 crore. Joshi is a former Congress minister.
The bench set aside the Rajasthan High Court's Jaipur Bench order of August 13, 2026, which had refused bail, according to the reports. The Supreme Court acknowledged that allegations of large-scale financial impropriety in a public welfare scheme warrant serious scrutiny, while granting bail on the Article 21 ground.
Serious allegations warrant serious scrutiny, but seriousness alone cannot justify keeping an undertrial in custody indefinitely; personal liberty and speedy trial under Article 21 must be protected.