Supreme Court Grants Bail To 72 Year Old Man Whose Conviction Was Upheld By Allahabad HC After 41 Years
The criminal appeal, filed in 1985, remained pending in the High Court for over 40 years.
The Supreme Court recently flagged the flagrant delay of 41 years by the Allahabad High Court in disposing of a criminal appeal against a murder conviction.
A bench comprising Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra and Justice Atul Chandurkar issued notice to the State of Uttar Pradesh in a special leave petition preferred by the convict challenging the Allahabad High Court's February 9 order dismissing his criminal appeal against conviction.
The appellant, Vijay Singh, was 28 years old when he was convicted by a Trial Court in Kanpur for the murder of his brother that took place in 1983. He was sentenced to life imprisonment in December 1985. Singh had immediately challenged his order of conviction and sentencing before the Allahabad High Court.
As an interim relief, he was granted bail, which continued for 40-odd years. Meanwhile, the matter kept pending for more than four decades. Only on February 9, 2026, the Allahabad High Court dismissed his appeal, which the appellant argues was summarily dismissed.
In his plea, Singh, now 72 years old, says that throughout his youth, middle age and now old age, he has lived in the shadow of conviction.
Senior Advocate Siddharth Dave(representing the appellant) informed the Court on Monday that the appellant has only been in jail for three months and has had an unblemished conduct throughout his bail. He requested that the petitioner be granted bail while the case is pending before the Supreme Court.
After hearing the counsel briefly, the Court granted him bail on terms and conditions as may be imposed by the Trial Court. It has also called for the Trial Court's records.
Additionally, the Court asked Dave to suggest what measures could be adopted by the High Court in order to dispose of such pending cases.
In the High Court's 20-page order, the High Court upheld the Trial Court's order of conviction and sentence, holding that the prosecution was able to prove the case beyond reasonable doubt. However, the High Court has made no mention as to why the appeal was pending for 40 years or so.
The petitioner in his plea has stated:"He is now 72 years old. For over four decades, through youth, middle age, and now old age he has lived under the shadow of that conviction. He is today a grandfather, beset by multiple ailments that attend a man of his years. His criminal appeal languished before the Hon'ble High Court for forty years before being finally heard and dismissed almost summarily. This Special Leave Petition is, in the truest sense, his last recourse and, as will be demonstrated, the conviction itself rests on deeply infirm foundations which, with the greatest respect, have been completely overlooked by the Hon'ble High Court."
Case Details: VIJAY SINGH v STATE OF UTTAR PRADESH|Diary No. 23605-2026
Appearances: For Petitioner(s) Mr. Siddhartha Dave, Sr. Adv. (through VC) Mr. Zoheb Hossein, Adv. Mr. Naman Joshi, Adv. Mr. Guneet Sidhu, Adv. Mr. Verdaan Jain, Adv. Mr. Yusuf Tariq, Adv. Mr. Mehul Pant, Adv. Mr. Jasmeet Singh, AOR
For Respondent(s) Mr. Yasharth Kant, AOR Mr. Amol Chitravanshi, Adv. Ms. Sonal Kushwah, Adv. Ms. Prerna Sharma, Adv.