HC adjourns hearing on Deshmukh's bail plea; deprecates practice of seeking urgent hearings on medical grounds

Anil Deshmukh. File pic

Deprecating the practice of seeking urgent hearings of bail pleas citing medical emergencies, the Bombay High Court on Friday adjourned the hearing on the bail application filed by Maharashtra's former home minister Anil Deshmukh, arrested in a money laundering case.

The court said that urgent hearings being sought on medical grounds has become a problem.

A single bench of Justice Anuja Prabhudessai also directed Desmukh's lawyer to give in writing what medical emergency the NCP leader was facing.

The court said urgent hearing on Deshmukh's bail plea was sought by his advocates on the ground of medical emergency.

"So now, I will hear the plea only on medical grounds and not on merits," the court said.

"This petition was listed a day after it was filed only because the precipe (application seeking urgent hearing) mentioned medical grounds. Otherwise priority is given to old bail matters pending since many years," Justice Prabhudessai said.

"I don't want anyone saying something tomorrow," Justice Prabhudessai said.

The court further said that several accused are languishing in jail since more than five and ten years.

"Keeping such accused waiting, we cannot take up new matters for hearing. This is why I had said only those pleas, in which there is some medical emergency or funeral, are taken up for hearing," Justice Prabhudessai said.

"The moment I issued these directives, every bail plea filed says medical emergency. Courts cannot be taken for granted like this," the court said.
Justice Prabhudessai said this has become a problem in several bail petitions, where urgent hearing is sought on medical emergencies.

Deshmukh's advocate Aniket Nikam told the court that there was medical emergency in the case and that the senior NCP leader was admitted to the state-run J J Hospital for shoulder dislocation.

Nikam urged the court to call for a medical report on Deshmukh's health condition.

The court, however, said it would not do so on its own and asked Nikam to file an application stating what medical emergency Deshmukh is facing.

"You (Nikam) put it in writing. I will then ask the ED (Enforcement Directorate) to respond and then we will see if medical report needs to be called," Justice Prabhudessai.

The court adjourned hearing Deshmukh's plea for two weeks.

Deshmukh was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in November 2021, and is currently in judicial custody.

The NCP leader had filed a petition in the high court after a special court rejected his bail plea earlier this month. He sought bail on grounds of his ailing health and termed the ED's case as false and frivolous.

The ED in its affidavit opposed the bail plea and said Deshmukh was the mastermind and brain behind the conspiracy and that he has misused his official position as home minister.

Deshmukh is presently in CBI custody till April 11 in connection with its corruption probe

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