"Bail not Jail" is the cardinal principle that upholds the sacrosanct ideas of individual's liberty and dignity. Explain the statement with the help of various judicial pronouncements.

Recently, the open court of India has instructed lower courts to keep for bail as the norm and 'jail' as exception. These enforcing the ideas of liberty and dignity once again. Bail upholds ideas of individual liberty & dignity: 1) No empirical evidence that sending accused to jail leads to reformation. 2) Social stigma is permanently attached. 3) Rehabilitation and reform through socialisation should be preferred. 4) Granting bail also unearthlogs the jail infrastructure. 5) Bail ensure that process of trial does not up become punishment itself.

As per NCRB data, around 70% of inmates in Indian prisons are undertrial. Moreover, these inmates belong to the backward classes and castes, perpetuating the vicious cycle of poverty. Sending to prison: Undertrials → Vicious cycle → Pushed into criminal world → Insufficient skits are to their skill set. Reforms are not needed yet but prisons are important as well. 1) Keep accused of heinous crimes fed away. 2) Ensure fear/deterrence in minds of criminals 3) Keep regular violators out of social settings. Thus, CJI Dipak Mishra & Chandrachuds have time & again reinforced principles of liberty & dignity, as mentioned in Preamble.

— Vishwajeet Gupta · AIR 67