Ethics · 31 Jul 2026

UAPA bail Article 21 Supreme Court

With reference to the Supreme Court's 2026 order granting bail to two UAPA-accused persons, consider the following statements:

  1. The bail was granted after nearly 12 years of pretrial detention with the trial nowhere near conclusion.
  2. Section 43D(5) of the UAPA sets a stringent standard for granting bail.
  3. The Court explicitly ruled on the merits of the case while granting bail.
  4. The precedent of Union of India v. K.A. Najeeb (2021) was relevant to the Court's reasoning.

How many of the above statements are correct?

AOnly one
BOnly two
COnly three
DAll four
This question is based on: When Twelve Years in Jail Becomes the Sentence Itself
Take this in full test mode → Instructions for 31 Jul 2026
About this question

Why in news

The Supreme Court granted bail to Mohd. Saquib Ansari and Waqar Azhar after verifying stalled trial progress through the e-Courts Services Portal, citing Article 21.

Why for UPSC

This tests whether aspirants can distinguish the procedural basis of a ruling (delay-based liberty) from an incorrect assumption that bail implies a merits-based finding of innocence.

Prelims summary

The SC granted UAPA bail after 12 years of stalled trial, applying the K.A. Najeeb precedent on Article 21, without ruling on the case's merits.

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