Deficient Monitoring Mechanisms Against Bail in Pakistan: A Challenge for the Protection of Rights of the Parties

Abstract

Bail is one of the most powerful non-custodial tools which the authorities administer very cautiously, taking into account the interests of both parties to the case in particular and the safety of the society in general. The monitoring mechanisms attached to the bail-bonds play an essential role in this context. In Pakistan, the law offers very few mechanisms to monitor the person released on bail; this paucity of options sometimes poses the rights of parties to the case at risk. Despite being a subject of high significance, this issue has failed to receive due attention from the Pakistani legislature and the judiciary. The content of this assertion is evident from very outdated law and restricted judicial interpretations on this point. This state of affairs direly calls for change in the judicial attitude which does not seem possible without amending the existing law on bail. For this purpose, this paper conducts an inquiry into the Indian and the English legal regimes on bail. The research finally proposes enhancement and intensification of the surveillance strategies through the utilization of the Indian law on bail to insert additional monitoring mechanisms place-able especially against the bail-seeker. It further suggests that the judiciary should have clear discretion to impose every suitable monitoring mechanism on the pattern of English law against the bail-seeker.