Courts Should Inform Accused About Their Right To ‘Default Bail’ Once It Accrues: SC

The Supreme Court has observed that Courts should inform the accused of the availability of their indefeasible right to avail ‘default bail’ once it accrues to them. The objects of Section 167(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure are subsets of the overarching fundamental right guaranteed under Article 21, the bench comprising Justices UU Lalit, Mohan M. Shantanagoudar and Vineet Saran said in a judgment delivered on Monday. The bench also observed that if the Court deliberately does not decide the bail application but adjourns the case by granting time to the prosecution, it would be in violation of the legislative mandate.