New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday declined to entertain petitions filed by the NIA challenging the bail granted to 17 Popular Front of India members in the 2022 murder case of RSS leader Srinivasan in Kerala's Palakkad district.
The matter came up before a bench comprising Justices Abhay S Oka and N Kotiswar Singh. The bench said that the Kerala High Court order granting bail to the accused is one-year-old and the High Court has the power to cancel bail if the conditions are violated.
During the hearing, the counsel, appearing for the NIA, sought cancellation of the bail and submitted that the accused have violated the bail conditions and contacted the witnesses.
The bench said its attention is invited to an observation made in the last part of the impugned order by which the High Court has reserved liberty to the petitioners to apply to a special court for cancellation of bail. "Therefore, the petitioners can always apply to the special court for cancellation of bail on the grounds which are set out in the affidavits filed in these petitions. In fact, the special court will be the more appropriate court," the bench said.
The top court said at this stage it is not keen to entertain the special leave petitions filed by the agency and gave liberty to it to move the special court/high court for cancellation of bail. "Needless to say, if the prayer made by the petitioner does not succeed before the special court/high court, remedies of the petitioners remain open," said the top court.
The apex court made it clear that as and when an application is made for cancellation of bail, the special court or high court should not be influenced by the fact that this court has declined to entertain the present special leave petitions. In June 2024, the High Court granted bail to the 17 accused PFI members, who are also facing trial for allegedly instigating communal violence in the state and other parts of the country.
Initially, 51 persons were arraigned as accused in connection with the murder of Srinivasan on April 16, 2022. One among those held died while seven others are absconding. The Centre in September 2022 directed the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to take up and probe the case against the accused.
