| Citation(s) |
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| 2025 SLG 2040 2025 SLD 2040 = 2025 SCP 249 = 2025 PCRLJ 1115 = 2025 SCMR 1679 |
Criminal Petition No.27-K of 2025 (Against order dated 16.01.2025 of the High Court of Sindh, Karachi passed in Crl. Bail Application No.2690 of 2024)
Mr. Justice Athar Minallah Mr. Justice Irfan Saadat Khan Mr. Justice Malik Shahzad Ahmad Khan
For the petitioner: Mr. Ali Wahid, Advocate High Court (with Court’s permission) (via video link from Karachi) For the State: Ms. Rahat Ehsan, Additional Prosecutor General, Sindh For the complainant: Mr. Salahuddin Khan Gandapur, ASC Mr. Ghulam Rasool Mangi, AOR a/w Abdul Khanan (via video link from Karachi) Date of hearing: 15.04.2025
Noor Agha …Petitioner
VERSUS
The State and another …Respondents
Law: Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898
Section: 497(1)
Law: Pakistan Penal Code, 1860
Section: 302, 365, 34
Law: Constitution of Pakistan, 1973
Section: 9, 10A, 14
Summary of Judgment
This Supreme Court order concerns the grant of bail on statutory grounds due to prolonged pre-trial detention, focusing on the interpretation of the exception for “hardened, desperate or dangerous criminal†under the 4th proviso to Section 497(1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 (Cr.P.C.).
The petitioner, accused of offences under sections 302, 365, and 34 PPC with the possibility of a death sentence, had been held in custody for over two years with no delays in trial attributed to him. His request for bail was denied by the trial and High Court based solely on the gravity of the offence, labeling him a “hardened, desperate or dangerous criminal,†but without any evidence of prior criminality, violence, or risk to society.
The Supreme Court clarified that the exception can only be invoked where credible material supports an actual risk to society. As no such material was presented, the denial of bail was set aside and statutory bail granted.