Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973–Sec. 438/439–Bail conditions–How nature of should be ?–Held,
(i) Bail conditions should not mandate, require or permit the contact between the accused and victim,
(ii) Where circumstances exist for the Court to believe that there might be a potential threat of harassment of the victim, or upon apprehension expressed, after calling the reports from police, the nature of protection shall be separately considered and appropriate order made, in addition to a direction to the accused not to make any contact with the victim,
(iii) In all cases where the bail is granted, the complainant should be immediately informed that the accused has been granted bail and the copy of bail order made over to him/her within two days,
(iv) Bail conditions and orders should avoid reflecting stereotypical or patriarchal notions about women and their place in society, and must be strictly in accordance with the requirements of the Cr.P.C.,
(v) The Courts while adjudicating cases involving gender-related crimes, should not suggest or entertain any notions (or encourage any steps) towards the compromise between the prosecutrix and the accused to get married, suggest or mandate mediation between the accused and the survivor, or any form of compromise as it is beyond their powers and jurisdiction,
(vi) Sensitivity should be displayed at all times by the Judges who should ensure that there is no traumatization of the prosecutrix during the proceedings, or anything said during the arguments, and (vii) Judges especially should not use any words, spoken or written, that would under-mine or shake the confidence of the survivor in the fairness or impartiality of the Court.
