Allahabad HC: anticipatory bail can be sought after chargesheet; Bharat Chaudhary prevails; bail extended till end of trial
The question: Is an application for anticipatory bail maintainable after the chargesheet has been submitted and the accused summoned?
The Allahabad High Court has held that an application for anticipatory bail is maintainable even after the chargesheet has been submitted and the accused has been summoned to face trial, and has extended the applicant's anticipatory bail until the conclusion of the trial. Justice Jitendra Kumar Sinha, in an order marked A.F.R., preferred the Supreme Court's earlier decision in Bharat Chaudhary v. State of Bihar over a later order of a bench of equal strength in Ram Pukar Yadav v. State of Bihar. The applicant, Pawan Kumar, had been granted anticipatory bail by the High Court on 7 January 2026 in Criminal Misc. Anticipatory Bail Application No. 10927 of 2025, but only till submission of the police report under Section 173(2) Cr.P.C. / 193(3) BNSS. The chargesheet was then submitted and he was summoned. He filed a fresh application under Section 482 BNSS, NABAIL No. 7094 of 2026, contending that an application for anticipatory bail is maintainable after submission of the chargesheet. The Additional Advocate General argued at the outset that the application was not maintainable because the applicant no longer had any apprehension of arrest. The order was reserved on 20 July 2026 and delivered on 23 September 2026.