New Delhi: The Supreme Court has granted bail to former Rajasthan Congress minister Mahesh Chandra Joshi, who is an accused in a corruption case concerning alleged irregularities in tenders worth hundreds of crores of rupees under the Jal Jeevan Mission. The apex court granted bail to Joshi and Mukesh Pathak – another accused in the case – while noting that detention before trial cannot be allowed to become punishment in itself, reported Live Law.A bench of Justices Dipankar Datta and Sheel Nagu ruled that, no matter the gravity, allegations cannot override bail deliberations or justify indefinite incarceration before a trial has taken place. Reiterating an undertrial’s right to liberty and a speedy trial, protected under article 21 of the constitution, it said an individual’s rights must be safeguarded even when the allegations concern financial wrongdoing or collusion with the accused.“As repeatedly emphasised by this Court, prolonged pre-trial detention cannot be permitted to degenerate into punishment without trial in derogation of an undertrial’s Fundamental Right to personal liberty and speedy trial guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution,” the court said.While the court granted regular bail to the accused in the alleged large-scale financial impropriety case, merely after five to eight months, on the grounds that prolonged pre-trial detention could not be confused with punishment, Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam continue to face pre-trial detention even after six years of arrest.Investigation complete, chargesheets filedThe bench also observed that the investigation against Joshi and Pathak had been completed and chargesheets had been filed. As per the court’s assessment, the prosecution case relied substantially on documentary and electronic material, including tender records, official correspondence, bank statements, forensic reports relating to seized mobile devices and intercepted conversations – all of which were already in the investigation agency’s possession.It added that no further custodial interrogation or recovery from the two accused was required.According to the Live Law report, the cases involves 22 accused, three chargesheets, 124 prosecution witnesses and 192 documents running to approximately 20,000 pages. Charges have not yet been framed and the trial has not commenced.Taking the volume of evidence into consideration, the apex court said the trial was likely to take considerable time to conclude.“Viewed in the totality of the aforesaid circumstances, we are satisfied that further pre-trial incarceration of the appellants is neither warranted nor necessary, and that any legitimate apprehension of the prosecution can be adequately safeguarded by imposing appropriate conditions,” the court concluded.