LAHORE: The Lahore High Court has held that there is no legal or moral compulsion to keep people in jail merely on the basis of allegation and added that bail is not to be withheld as a punishment.
The court said that the object of the bail was to secure the attendance of accused at the trial as it was neither punitive nor preventive.
The court passed this order during the proceedings of a bail petition of one Muhammad Sarwar.
The court allowed bail to the petitioner subject to his furnishing bail bonds to the satisfaction of the trial court.
The court said, all civilized societies recognize the principle that punishment comes only after conviction, and the presumption of innocence subsist with the accused till he is handed down punishment after trial.
The court said, imprisonment of a person and deprivation of his liberty cannot be described other than being a punishment unless no less restrictive alternative is available to ensure that the accused will stand his trial when called upon to do so.
The court said it is a settled legal position that at the bail stage deeper appreciation of the record cannot be gone into, but only a tentative assessment is to be made just to find out as to whether present accused are connected with the commission of offence or not.
The court said the ultimate conviction and incarceration of a guilty person can repair the wrong caused by a mistaken, the relief of interim bail granted to him.
But no satisfactory reparation can be offered to an innocent man for his unjustified incarceration at any stage of the case albeit his acquittal in the long run, the court added.
The court said no evidence against the petitioner is available on the record to support the allegations of counterfeiting currency notes or sale thereof in the market except the so-called confession which is inadmissible, the court added.
The court observed that prima facie ingredients of Section 489-B, P.P.C. are not met in the circumstances of this case, but at best it can be a case of Section 489-C, P.P.C. for which maximum punishment is prescribed to the extent of seven years, which does not fall within the prohibitory clause of Section 497, Cr.P.C.
It is, therefore, for the trial court to determine finally whether provisions of Sections 489-B or 489-C, P.P.C., are attracted in this case after recording evidence, the court concluded.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026
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