Decide bails in 1 week, trials in petty cases in 6 mths: SC

NEW DELHI: "Timely delivery of justice is a part of human rights," the Supreme Court on Friday said and fixed deadlines for deciding longpending criminal cases in high courts and trial courts across the country.

Issuing a slew of directions to all high courts, a bench of Justices Adarsh Kumar Goel and U U Lalit said, "Denial of speedy justice is a threat to public confidence in the administration of justice" and the fundamental right to speedy trial "cannot be denied even on the plea of non-availability of financial resources".

It asked the high courts to issue directions to subordinate courts to decide bail pleas "normally within one week", besides asking magistrates to conclude trial in petty offences, where undertrials are in jails, within six months.

The sessions courts will have to conclude trials in serious offences within two years, if the accused are in jail, the apex court said, adding strict adherence to the timeline be ensured by making it a part of Annual Confidential Reports of judicial officers.

"Efforts be made to dispose of all cases which are five years old by the end of the year," it said, adding "if an undertrial has completed period of custody in excess of the sentence likely to be awarded if conviction is recorded, such undertrial must be released on personal bond. Such an assessment must be made by the concerned trial courts from time to time."

"The timelines may be the touchstone for assessment of judicial performance in annual confidential reports," it said. NEW DELHI: The Centre on Friday told the Supreme Court that it was open to the suggestion of conducting NEET, a single window entrance test for admissions for MBBS and BDS courses, in Urdu medium also from next academic year.

The central government, represented by Solicitor General Ranjit Kumar, however, told the bench comprising Justices Kurian Joseph and R Banumathi that it was not feasible to introduce Urdu as one of the mediums for the National Eligibility-cum-entrance Test from the current academic year. The bench granted time till March 22 to the Centre and others including MCI for filing their responses in the case. WAGAH: Under detention for nearly six months, two boys from POK were on Friday handed over to Pakistani authorities at the Wagah border after the NIA dropped charges of conspiracy in the Uri terror strike.

Faisal Hussain Awan and Ahsan Khursheed had been handed over to the Jammubased 16 Corps of the army on March 8 after the probe agency came to a conclusion that the two had strayed into the Indian side after tiff with their parents due to pressure of studies. The army's unit at Uri had detained them and questioned them at length after the September 18 attack on its camp in which 19 personnel were left dead.

The NIA had said that the evidence collected in the form of statements, technical analysis of their mobile phones, seized GPS devices and other circumstantial evidence collected by the NIA “did not reveal any linkage of the suspects with the Uri attackers”.

The army had detained the two on September 23, barely days after the terror strike, and claimed that the two had allegedly acted as guides of four terrorists who carried out attack on the Uri garrison in North Kashmir.

On September 18 last year, four heavily armed militants had stormed the Uri army base camp killing 19 soldiers and injuring few others.

The NIA had taken over the investigation in the case from the state police. The two youths were arrested by the BSF and the army in a joint operation at ‘Angoor Post at Gavalata village in Uri when they were trying to infiltrate into India. LAKHIMPUR KHERI (UP): Six people, including a company commander of the paramilitary force SSB, were injured on Friday in cross-border stone-pelting along the IndoNepal border here in Lakhimpur Kheri which remained “tense” for the second day.

Hundreds of Nepalese citizens gathered at the disputed land on the border today and pelted stones at the SSB personnel and villagers.

“Three SSB personnel, including company commander T K Hans, were injured in fresh stone-pelting,” said Commandant Dilbag Singh of the paramilitary force which guards the Indo- Nepal border.

Hans sustained injury in the eye. “Three civilians of Basahi village were also injured and all were given medical treatment,” the Commandant said.

This was the second consecutive day that stone-pelting took place in the area, where nine SSB jawans and few civilians were injured yesterday.

Nepalese citizens have been pelting stones after SSB jawans deployed at the location objected to permanent construction work on a disputed land near pillar No 200, officials say.

In New Delhi, Director General of SSB (Sashastra Seema Bal) said, “The situation is tense today and a large number of Nepalese people have gathered on the spot again and resorted to shouting anti-india slogans and stone-pelting. Local officers and SSB officers are on the spot.”

She said she was told by her force that there was no firing by SSB as has been alleged in some media reports, which claimed that one Nepali national had died in it.