Shillong, July 2: The Meghalaya government has escalated its fight over Sonam Raghuwanshi’s bail to the Supreme Court, with Solicitor General Tushar Mehta personally seeking an urgent hearing that the apex court has now fixed for Friday.
Sources in Shillong confirmed Mehta and Advocate General Amit Kumar mentioned the matter before the bench today and secured priority listing for July 3.
The state is challenging twin orders by the trial court on April 27 and the Meghalaya High Court on June 27, both of which granted Sonam bail after holding that police had not informed her of the grounds of arrest. The government insists she was briefed at several stages and that the lower courts misread the record.
Legal observers say the Supreme Court’s review will hinge on whether the alleged procedural lapse was serious enough to justify bail, or whether the arrest memo and remand papers show she was told why she was being held. If the bench accepts the state’s version, it could cancel the bail and return Sonam to custody, setting a firmer standard for how arrest grounds are documented in Meghalaya. If it sides with the High Court, the bail will stay and reinforce strict compliance with notice requirements at the time of arrest.
The Solicitor General’s direct role underscores how Shillong views the case as a precedent-setter for policing and prosecution across the state, with Friday’s hearing likely to clarify how far procedural gaps can go before they undermine an arrest.
