- In Kalla @ Vidyaram Vs. State of MP (2022), Justice Anand Pathak overruled the Madhya Pradesh High Court's imposed condition for obtaining bail, which required a Bail Applicant to plant five seedlings of any 'fruit yielding tree' or 'Neem/Pipal tree,' by stating that the bail request was granted solely on the merits of the case and not in exchange for any social duty.
- In the present case, the Applicant appealed that a false case for offenses punishable under Section 302, Section 323, Section 294, Section 506, and Section 34 IPC was filed against him. It was further claimed that no tampering of evidence was done as the evidence was thoroughly examined. The Applicant also assured the Hon'ble Court that he would not cause any inconvenience to any of the witnesses and would be cooperative during the length of the trial. He contended that his case be considered for bail based on the length of his imprisonment. Furthermore, the Applicant stated that if granted bail, he voluntarily intended to "serve the National/Environmental/Social cause to purge his misdeed."
- The essential sections to this case are mentioned below:
- Section 302 of the IPC says if a person commits murder, he or she will be sentenced to death or life imprisonment, as well as a fine.
- Section 323 of the IPC applies to cases where only minor injuries are sustained, in contrast to more severe instances of violence, which are dealt with under Section 324 where weapons are used, Section 325 where "grievous" harm is caused.
- Section 294 of the IPC signifies whosoever, to aggravate others, does any obscene act in any public place; or sings, recites, or utters any obscene song, ballad, or words in or near any public place, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term that may extend to three months, or with fine, or with both.
- Section 506 of the IPC specifies the punishment for criminal intimidation. It divides criminal intimidation into two categories: less severe and more severe, and punishment is assigned accordingly.
- Section 34 of the IPC deals with acts committed by a group of people to further a common goal.
- In a similar notable case, Akshaya Kumar, father of the victim and a resident of Madhapur village, had filed a police complaint. However, Justice Panigrahi, of Orissa HC, ruled that there was no prima facie case against the petitioner. The accused, Subhranshu Pradhan, had applied for bail in HC after being charged under Sections 452, 379, 506, 354 B, and 307 of the IPC. As a result, on Friday, Justice Panigrahi granted him bail with the condition that he plant 100 saplings in his native village Mundipadar within three months of his release. As proof of compliance, the petitioner was required to show the plantations to the IO of the Baunsumni police station, who would then notify the trial court, according to the order.
- The Hon'ble Court, taking into consideration the fact that material prosecution witnesses have been examined, the possibility of tampering with the evidence is remote and keeping in mind and the State's objection to the application, granted bail to the accused on a condition that a personal bond of Rs.1,00,000/- with two solvent sureties of like amount to the satisfaction of the Trial Court was to be furnished by the Applicant.
- In spreading out the bail conditions, the Court added Condition 9 of the bail order, which was imposed solely after considering the Applicants' expressed desire to perform community service, which required the Applicant to-
- Plant 5 saplings of a 'fruit-bearing tree' or a 'Neem/Pipal' tree that stands 6-8 feet tall to help them grow faster.
- Protect the saplings by surrounding them with fences, as nurturing the saplings is just as important as planting them.
- Within 30 days of being released from jail, the photographs of the planted saplings are to be submitted.
- A status report on the planted saplings shall be submitted in the Court every three months for the next three years.
- Submission of photographs by downloading the mobile application (NISARG App) developed at the HC request to monitor the plantation via satellite/Geo-tagging.
- Consequently, the Hon'ble Court ruled that this condition is proposed as an experiment to combat thoughts of violence and evil through nature to stabilize society. Thus, the Applicant must care for the saplings because changing environmental conditions threaten humanity's existence. However, any carelessness displayed in this regard would not be tolerated and could cancel the Applicant's bail.
- Therefore, the appeal was accepted by the Hon'ble Court.
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