Jasminbhai Bharatbhai Kothari vs. State of Gujarat
Citation: 2025 INSC 172; Bench: Justice Vikram Nath, Justice Sandeep Mehta
Background
This case concerned Jasminbhai Bharatbhai Kothari, who was facing criminal proceedings in Gujarat. He had been granted temporary bail by the High Court, but after the High Court refused to extend this relief, he approached the Supreme Court through a Special Leave Petition (SLP). The primary issue before the Supreme Court was whether the SLP challenging the High Court’s refusal to extend temporary bail was maintainable after the petitioner had already surrendered to custody.
Supreme Court Proceedings and Orders
On January 30, 2025, the Supreme Court recorded that Jasminbhai Bharatbhai Kothari had surrendered pursuant to the rejection of his application for extension of temporary bail by the High Court.
The Court noted that since the petitioner had already surrendered, the SLP challenging the High Court’s refusal to further extend temporary bail had become infructuous. The Supreme Court, therefore, disposed of the SLP as infructuous, meaning there was no longer any substantive issue to adjudicate because the relief sought (extension of bail) was rendered moot by the petitioner’s surrender and compliance with the High Court’s order.
The Court’s order specifically stated:
"Returning to the facts of the present case, since the petitioner has already surrendered upon the rejection of the Interlocutory Application(supra), the present special leave petition challenging the High Court's refusal to extend the temporary bail has become infructuous. Accordingly, the special leave petition is disposed of as infructuous."
Additionally, the Court recorded the oral mention by the petitioner’s counsel that the petitioner had not surrendered, but confirmed—on the basis of the record and previous orders—that surrender had indeed taken place and the petition was, therefore, to be closed.
Significance
The Supreme Court reiterated the principle that once the relief sought in a petition (here, extension of temporary bail) becomes impossible to grant due to supervening circumstances (here, the petitioner’s surrender), the petition is rendered infructuous and must be disposed of accordingly.
The Court’s approach underscores the importance of the actual status of the petitioner at the time of hearing and the need for judicial economy by not entertaining academic or moot questions.
The decision also highlights procedural diligence in criminal appellate jurisdiction, where the Court ensures that its orders reflect the factual developments and do not issue rulings on issues that have lost practical relevance.
Conclusion
The Supreme Court, on January 30, 2025, disposed of Jasminbhai Bharatbhai Kothari’s SLP as infructuous after confirming that the petitioner had surrendered following the High Court’s refusal to extend temporary bail, thus rendering the challenge to the High Court’s order moot.
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