Supreme Court: Detainees Can Fight Appeals on Bail if Verdict Delayed Beyond Six Months

Kathmandu – In a significant ruling, the Supreme Court of Nepal has ordered that detainees who have appealed their sentences and are currently in prison due to either imprisonment or unpaid fines will be allowed to fight their case while on bail if a verdict is not reached within six months. The court issued this order through a full bench during the hearing of an appeal filed by Mahendra Prasad Mishra.

The bench, comprising Justices Til Prasad Shrestha, Sharanga Subedi, Mahesh Sharma Paudel, Tek Prasad Dhungana, and Sunil Kumar Pokhrel, noted that there have been delays in recovering fines in past cases. The court also instructed that any cash bail deposited with the court should be transferred immediately to the government’s treasury or any property kept as collateral should be auctioned off after the final verdict is made.

The court cited legal provisions under the Civil Code and Criminal Procedure Code of 2017, which outline that detainees who cannot pay fines should have their property seized and auctioned to recover the amount. The full bench emphasized that such practices have been underutilized and called for better implementation of these provisions.

The Supreme Court also directed the court registrar to ensure that relevant offices, authorities, and the concerned judicial staff are notified to take necessary action in cases involving unpaid fines. The court ruled that only if recovery from the detainee’s property is impossible should imprisonment be considered as a form of penalty for unpaid fines.

The ruling is expected to impact detainees like Mahendra Prasad Mishra, who had completed his prison sentence but remained in detention for failing to pay the fines. Mishra had appealed while in detention, and with the new ruling, such detainees can now fight their cases outside prison if their appeal verdict is delayed beyond six months.

This decision is seen as a significant move toward ensuring timely justice and providing relief to those detained due to unpaid fines.