Holding a minister's post does not entitle a person for a special consideration for the grant of bail, the Supreme Court said on Friday, asserting that "official positions, regardless of their stature, lose relevance for the purpose of exercising judicial discretion judiciously".

A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan, which granted conditional future bail to former West Bengal minister Partha Chatterjee in a money-laundering case related to the alleged cash-for-jobs scam in the state, said impartiality is a prerequisite to the rule of law, wherein decisions are based on the factual matrix of a case as opposed to an individual's position or influence.

It rejected Chatterjee's argument seeking special consideration for the grant of bail on the ground that he was entitled for the relief as he was a minister at the relevant time.

"In this context, the argument that the appellant's position as a minister entitles him to any special consideration does not hold merit from either perspective. Impartiality is a prerequisite to the rule of law, wherein decisions are based on the factual matrix of the case as opposed to the individual's position or influence," the bench said.

It added that the court has emphatically clarified that while an accused person's official status should not form grounds for denying bail to him, it also cannot constitute a special consideration for the grant of bail if no case is made out to provide such relief.

"Official positions, regardless of their stature, lose their relevance for the purpose of exercising judicial discretion judiciously," it said.

The bench said it has been reiterated by the apex court time and again through its decisions that prolonged incarceration of an accused awaiting trial unjustly deprives him of his right to personal liberty.

"Even statutory embargoes on the grant of bail must yield when weighed against the paramount importance of the right to life and liberty under Article 21 of the Constitution, particularly in cases where such incarceration extends over an unreasonably long period without the conclusion of the trial," the bench said.

The top court, however, added that it is a well-established principle that the grant of bail would depend on the unique circumstances of each case, balanced against settled factors, such as the gravity of the offence, the nature of the allegations, the likelihood of interference with the ongoing investigation, the possibility of evidence tampering, threatening or influencing material witnesses, the societal impact of such release and the risk of the accused absconding.

It said Chatterjee's claim for bail must be examined through the lens of the various pleas he has taken to highlight his mitigating circumstances as well as the adverse impact it may cause in the wake of allegations of playing with the future of thousands of well-merited aspirants and the undue benefits accrued to undeserving people at the cost of these unsuccessful candidates.

The bench said the allegations of playing with the future of thousands of well-merited aspirants underscore the broader societal harm caused by such actions and the erosion of trust in the integrity of public institutions.

"In this light, the statement of the appellant's close associate(s) recorded under section 50 of the PMLA (Prevention of Money Laundering Act) assumes enormous significance, as it constitutes prima facie evidence linking the appellant to substantial heaps of bribe money recovered from the associate's residence and company premises," it said.

The bench directed the release of Chatterjee on bail on February 1, 2025, subject to the trial court framing charges against the accused and examining vulnerable witnesses by January 30.

Chatterjee, who has been suspended by the Trinamool Congress (TMC), will not come out of jail as he has also been arrested in other cases related to the "scam".

He has been named as an accused in eight cases -- three probed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and five by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

The top court noted that Chatterjee was arrested by the ED on July 22, 2022 and has been in custody since then.