New Delhi, Oct 7 A Delhi court on Wednesday rejected the bail plea of a man booked under the stringent MCOCA, saying under special laws, prolonged incarceration cannot by itself be a determinative ground to release an accused.
Special Judge Gaurav Rao was hearing the bail application of Hariom, who has been charged under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) by the Sultanpuri police station here.
In its order, the court said, "No doubt the applicant (Hariom) is in custody since October 2025, though he has been on interim bail for around 102 days and it is well settled that the mandate under Article 21 of the Constitution prohibits prolonged pre-trial incarceration of the accused, particularly when there is no reasonable likelihood of expeditious conclusion of trial."
It said that, however, in cases under special statutes like the MCOCA, which incorporates conditions restricting bail, "prolonged incarceration, though a relevant ground, cannot by itself be a determinative ground to release the accused on bail".
"What is required in such cases is harmonisation of the constitutional guarantee of liberty of an individual or accused and the legislative objective which led to statutory provisions restricting bail," the judge said.
He said though Article 21 protects an individual's liberty, it also reflects the State's obligation to protect the life, liberty and security of the community of the society.
"The facts of each case must be assessed independently and the rights of the society, the public at large must be balanced with those of the accused, particularly in cases involving heinous offences. Long incarceration cannot be a stand-alone consideration and requires to be weighed vis-a-vis the nature of offence and the material against the accused," the judge said.
He said hence, the incarceration of around a year itself is not a factor entitling the accused to bail and that the gravity of the offence and the nature of allegations outweigh the plea seeking the grant of the relief.
"The applicant prima facie furthered, facilitated the objective of the crime syndicate which was to generate illegal wealth. Therefore, in view of the above discussion, I am not inclined to enlarge the applicant on bail at this stage," the judge said, dismissing the plea.
