In the context of legal proceedings, ‘Default Bail’ refers to a peculiar right that comes into play when the police fail to wind up an investigation within a designated period pertaining to a person in judicial custody. This right is also known as Statutory Bail and is encapsulated in Section 167(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC). According to this law, if the police are unable to complete the investigation within a stipulated time frame, the accused held in judicial custody has the liberty to seek bail.
The rudimentary process adheres to the following direction: If the police are unable to conclude the investigation within 24 hours, they are required to present the suspect in front of a magistrate. The magistrate then deliberates on whether the individual should continue to stay in police or judicial custody. As per Section 167(2), the magistrate can sanction the accused’s detention in police custody for up to 15 days.
If further investigations necessitate more time, the magistrate may authorize the individual’s detention in judicial custody, implying imprisonment. However, there is a maximum limit set for the detainment duration. If the scrutinizing authority is investigating a crime where the punishment can be death, lifetime incarceration, or imprisonment for at least ten years, the accused cannot be detained for more than ninety days. For lesser offenses, this duration is reduced to sixty days.
Special Situations and Diverse Laws
For certain special cases, laws like the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act may dictate different time frames for investigation completion, such as 180 days. For instance, under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act 1967, the default limit is kept at 90 days and can be extended to another set of 90 days. This extension grant relies on the Public Prosecutor’s report which must indicate the progress in the investigation and provide valid reasons why the accused needs to be kept in continued detention. These rules signify that any extension of time is not automatic and requires a judicial order.
Prior Judgements Pertaining to Default Bail
In cases like CBI vs Anupam J. Kulkarni (1992), the Supreme Court asserted that a magistrate can permit police custody for a maximum duration of 15 days following the arrest. Beyond this period, any added detention must be directed towards judicial custody, barring situations where the same accused is implicated in a different case stemming from a separate incident or transaction.
In Uday Mohanlal Acharya vs. State of Maharashtra (2001), it was held that an individual can avail their right to default bail only after filing an application for the same and not merely upon release on default bail. If an order of default bail is passed in favor of the accused, but he/she fails to provide bail and meanwhile a charge sheet is filed, then the right to default bail stands null and void.
The Different Varieties of Bail in India
Regular Bail refers to an instruction given by a court to set free a person presently under arrest and held in police custody. Interim Bail pertains to temporary bail granted by the court until the application seeking Anticipatory Bail or Regular Bail is pending before a Court. Anticipatory Bail implies a direction issued to release a person on Bail even before the person is arrested, generally applicable when there is an apprehension of arrest.
Constitutional Provisions Related to Arrest
Article 22 of the Indian Constitution ensures protection to individuals who are arrested or detained. Here, detention classifies into two types: punitive and preventive. Punitive detention is to penalize a person for an offence committed post-trial and conviction in a court. On the contrary, preventive detention implies detainment of a person without trial and conviction by a court.
Article 22 can be bifurcated into two sections. The first part relates to cases under ordinary law while the second part deals with cases of preventive detention law. Both punitive and preventive detentions offer certain rights to the individuals detained, but the conditions and terms differ for each. For instance, while individuals under punitive detention have the right to know their arrest grounds and be defended by a legal practitioner, those under preventive detention have rights such as not being detained beyond three months unless advised by an advisory board consisting of high court judges.
The Supreme Court’s Take on Default Bail
The recent buzz about default bail started when the SC advised lower courts to consider default bail pleas in criminal cases when the charge sheet is not filed within the set 60 or 90 days. This empowers them to grant default bail independently without relying on its judgment of Ritu Chhabaria versus Union of India (26th April 2023). This directive was issued while the SC was hearing an appeal by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) seeking the recall of the Ritu Chhabaria verdict. As per the Ritu Chhabaria judgment, “the right of default bail under Section 167(2) of the CrPC is not merely a statutory right, but a fundamental right that flows from Article 21 of the Constitution”. The essence is to safeguard accused individuals from the “unfettered and arbitrary power of the State”.