Regular bail in GST offences granted after completion of investigation and prolonged pre-trial custody.

Applicants accused under the Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 were granted regular bail because the investigation was complete, the complaint had been filed, charges had not been framed, and they had remained in custody for about 23 months. The Court noted that the alleged offence carried a maximum punishment of five years with no prescribed minimum sentence, and held that continued detention pending trial was unjustified without examining the merits of the ations. Regular bail was therefore granted.

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Issues: Whether the applicants, accused of offences under the Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, were entitled to regular bail in view of the completion of investigation, prolonged custody, and the nature of the alleged punishment.

Analysis: The applicants were in custody for about 23 months. The complaint had already been filed, the investigation was stated to be complete, and charges had not yet been framed. The maximum punishment for the alleged offence was five years and no minimum sentence was prescribed. In these circumstances, and without entering into the merits of the allegations, continued detention pending trial was considered unjustified.

Conclusion: Regular bail was granted to the applicants.

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