#bailable offence

The Allahabad High Court granted bail in a Customs Act case after finding the department's gold valuation exceeded Rs.1 crore only due to erroneous calculation, making the offence bailable under Section 135(1)(e)(i). This reinforces that accurate valuation, not speculative assessment, determines bailability in smuggling cases - a critical safeguard for accused facing prolonged custody.

The Karnataka High Court reiterated that imposing cash surety for bail under Section 436 CrPC contravenes binding Supreme Court rulings in Gajanan Gore and Prantik Kumar, which prohibit financial conditions as a prerequisite for liberty. The court set aside a ₹2.5 lakh cash surety order in a Section 138 NI Act case, reinforcing that bail must be granted on legal merit alone, not economic capacity.