The Supreme Court on Wednesday said stay orders in any pending criminal or civil trial proceedings would only be applicable for a maximum of six months from the date issued, LiveLaw reported. The only exception to the new judgement is a speaking order which will allow an extension if it is proven that continuing the stay was more important than having the trial finalised.
The three-judge bench ruled that the limit on the stay order will be applicable to future instances too. “This timeline is being fixed in view of the fact that such trials are expected to be concluded normally in one to two years,” said the bench headed by Adarsh Kumar Goel.
The court passed the order while replying to a reference by a two-judge bench in Asian Resurfacing of Road Agency Private Limited VS Central Bureau of Investigation.
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