Courts must not apply SC/ST Act bail bar mechanically: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court has ruled that courts cannot deny anticipatory bail mechanically when offences under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act are invoked. The court held that the statutory bar in Section 18 of the SC/ST Act must be examined on a case-by-case basis, considering the nature of allegations and supporting material on record. This ruling is likely to have significance in cases where allegations under the Atrocities Act are coupled with general criminal law offences.