KOLKATA: The Calcutta High Court has revoked the bail granted to a builder involved in a cheating case by a lower court, stating that the liberty of an accused cannot be safeguarded by an order “born in sin”.
Justice Uday Kumar noted that a bail order that is unsigned or partially initialed, lacks a rationale addressing the victim’s specific objections, and disregards witness intimidation history, constitutes a perverse ruling that the high court must annul.
“This case showcases a troubling scenario where the liberty of the accused overshadowed the victim’s safety through an order that fails the fundamental requirements of procedural authenticity,” the high court remarked.
The high court also instructed the Director of the West Bengal State Judicial Academy to introduce a module on “Recording of Judicial Orders and Authentication of Records” during induction and refresher courses for judicial officers, highlighting the legal repercussions of failing to comply with criminal regulations and orders.
Justice Kumar, while cancelling the bail of the builder involved in a breach of trust and cheating case adjudicated by a Sealdah court magistrate in 2018, emphasized that the bail order suffers from both procedural and substantive deficiencies.
“Thus, this court concludes that while the liberty of an accused is valuable, it cannot be safeguarded by an order that is ‘born in sin’, or one that is issued in defiance of the High Court’s administrative and judicial protocols,” Justice Kumar elucidated.
Justice Kumar, in a ruling delivered on March 6, annulled the order from May 7, 2018, along with all subsequent confirmations of bail for Suvendu Saha.
The court also mandated the Kolkata police commissioner to provide adequate and ongoing protection for the petitioner and her family.
The accused was arrested on May 3, 2018, following intervention by the high court, but was granted bail by the Sealdah court just four days later.
“The Learned Magistrate exercised discretion arbitrarily, disregarding binding precedents,” Justice Kumar noted.
The petitioner, an elderly widow and tenant in north Kolkata, had entered into a tripartite agreement with the developer in November 2014, requiring the builder to relocate her to temporary housing, cover monthly rental costs, and restore her to a self-contained flat within 24 months.
The petitioner claimed that after gaining possession of her tenanted dwelling for redevelopment, the builder unilaterally stopped the payment of displacement allowances and failed to deliver the promised flat, leading to a criminal complaint at the Cossipore police station in north Kolkata.
In cancelling Saha’s bail, the court remarked that the integrity of a judicial order relies not only on its substantive reasoning but also on the rigor of its formation.
“When a subordinate court neglects the mandatory procedural safeguards established to guarantee the authenticity of judicial documents, the resultant order is not simply irregular; it is legally flawed,” Justice Kumar emphasized.
