The Karnataka High Court has denied bail to an individual accused in the 2020 Bengaluru riots, citing the prioritisation of public safety and the overall welfare of society over individual liberty guaranteed by the Constitution. In a decision on June 12, the division bench comprising Justice Krishna S Dixit and Justice Pradeep Singh Yerur refused to follow the principle that bail should be granted as a general rule and imprisonment should be the exception, as stated by the Supreme Court.
“Almost all the norms in a legal system, be it civil or criminal, are relative; they are bound to the society’s calendar. With ceaseless run of time, these norms undergo change in their texture and colour for retaining their relevance as a living law of the people…norms of the kind cannot be chanted like mantra or slogans, in every bail petition out of the contextual circumstance. Etymology of a norm is ever the arbiter of its worth,” LiveLaw reported.
The Bengaluru riots in August 2020 resulted in widespread violence in the DJ Halli and KG Halli police station areas following a social media post about Prophet Mohammad. The unrest led to three fatalities, numerous injuries, attempted arson at the police station, and destruction of the residence of a sitting Congress MLA.
Imran Ahmed, the accused in the case, had appealed the special court's decision from November last year, which denied him bail. Ahmed argued for the protection of basic human rights and the presumption of innocence until proven guilty. He also cited the dictum that "bail is the rule and jail is an exception" by Justice Krishna Iyer. However, the bench dismissed these arguments and upheld the previous order.
It is worth noting that Justice Krishna S Dixit, one of the judges on the bench, had previously courted controversy. In June 2020, he granted bail to a rape accused, expressing skepticism towards the survivor's allegations. The Justice's comments on the survivor's behavior and reactions were criticized for being insensitive and perpetuating stereotypes.
He had stated that her claims were "difficult to believe" since she did not present herself as a "victim." The Justice questioned the rape survivor's presence in the office at 11 pm, arguing that her explanation of being tired and falling asleep after the incident was inappropriate for an Indian woman. “The explanation offered by the complainant that after the perpetration of the act she was tired and fell asleep, is unbecoming of an Indian woman; that is not the way our women react when they are ravished,” Justice Krishna Dixit had said.
In March 2022, Justice Krishna S Dixit was part of a bench that upheld the ban on wearing hijabs in schools and colleges in Karnataka. The bench concluded that wearing a hijab did not qualify as an essential practice in Islam and considered the government's uniform policy as a reasonable restriction on the fundamental rights of students.