30-year court case for an imported 1993 Mercedes 300D

Right to a speedy trial, guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution of India, was infringed

The Bombay High Court has quashed a criminal case against an 86-year-old woman over alleged unpaid customs duty on a Mercedes-Benz 300D that was supposedly smuggled into the country more than 30 years ago.

The criminal proceedings against Dev and Prabha Agarwal were initiated in 1996, following which, the couple approached the Bombay High Court for relief. The case dragged on until 2018 with little progress.

A plea to quash the case was filed on the ground that the petitioner’s right to a speedy trial, guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution of India, was infringed. The counsel appearing for the couple argued that the prosecution had failed to produce witnesses for 14 years without any justification.

The court was of the opinion that a delay of over 40 years (the probe started in 1983) violated Article 21. Taking note of the counsel’s arguments, the court said that the prosecution failed to take steps for years, with long gaps in proceedings between 2003 and 2017. The accused's advanced age and her poor health with a progressive disease justified the invocation of her right to a speedy trial to quash the case.

Source: TOI