The Supreme Court has held that appellant must be given the liberty to request a sentence suspension if the appeal could not be considered within a reasonable amount of time.
The division bench comprising of Justice Abhay S Oka and Justice M.M Sundresh was dealing with an appeal wherein the question arised as to whether an appeal against conviction under under Section 374 (2) CrPC can be dismissed on the ground that the accused is absconding.
Brief Facts of the Case
The factual matrix of the case is that the appellant was convicted for the offenses under Sections 302 and 120B IPC and section 27(1) of the Arms Act, 1959. The maximum substantive sentence is life imprisonment. Further, when the appeal for suspension of the sentence was filed by the appellant under subsection (2) of section 374 of the CrPC was dismissed by the Patna high court on the ground that the accused was absconding.
The Division Bench of the Patna High Court ruled that although the right to appeal is a crucial one, the appellant lost his ability to do so the moment he broke free of detention and flagrantly violated the legal system. The court relied on the judgments titled, ‘Shyam Deo Pandey & ors V. State of Bihar’, ‘Surya Baksh Singh Vs State of Uttar Pradesh, ‘Daya Shankar Singh Vs State of Bihar’ and ‘K.S Panduranga V. state of Karnataka’.
Supreme Court's Observation
The apex court held that it is understandable that the Division Bench felt so distressed over the appellant's egregious decision to flee and thwart the course of justice. That, however, does not constitute a reason to reject an appeal against a conviction that was already admitted for a final hearing on the grounds of non-prosecution without considering the merits. As a result, the contested decision must be set aside, and the appeal must be referred to the High Court for examination of the merits.
At last, the Supreme Court requested the High Court to ensure that the appeal is disposed of as expeditiously as possible, preferably within a period of six months from the date of the judgment. If the appeal is not heard within a period of 6 months, it will be open to the appellant to apply for suspension of the sentence before the High Court.
CASE NAME- Dhananjay Rai @ Guddu Rai Vs State of Bihar
CORAM- Justice Abhay S Oka and Justice M.M Sundresh
CITATION - CRIMINAL APPEAL NO.803 of 2017
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