SC Raps HC Judge for Overwhelming Bail Grants in Dowry Deaths A judge of the Allahabad High Court has come under scrutiny after data revealed a pattern of granting bail in dowry death cases, following criticism from the Supreme Court of India. An analysis of 510 bail orders issued between October and December 2025 by Justice Pankaj Bhatia showed that bail was granted in 508 cases, accounting for 99.61% of the total. The cases primarily involved charges under Section 304B of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), which pertains to dowry death, along with provisions of the Dowry Prohibition Act. The Supreme Court had previously challenged one of Justice Bhatia’s bail orders in February, questioning the reasoning behind granting relief in a serious dowry death case. The case in question involved a woman who died within months of marriage, with postmortem findings indicating strangulation. The apex court emphasized the need to evaluate factors such as the nature of the offense, evidence, and the relationship between the accused and the deceased. A bench comprising Justices J B Pardiwala and K V Vishwanathan expressed confusion over the High Court’s rationale, stating, “We fail to understand on plain reading of the impugned order as to what the High Court is trying to convey… what weighed with the High Court in exercising its discretion in favour of the accused for the purpose of grant of bail in a very serious crime like dowry death.” Following the Supreme Court’s remarks, Justice Bhatia requested that he not be assigned bail matters, citing the demoralizing impact of the criticism.#allahabad_high_court #supreme_court_of_india #justice_pankaj_bhatia #justice_j_b_pardiwala #justice_k_v_vishwanathan
