Quick answer
Default bail is the right of an accused to be released on bail when the police do not complete the investigation within the maximum period of custody allowed by law. Under Section 187(3) of the B.N.S.S., that period is 90 days where the offence is punishable with death, imprisonment for life or imprisonment of ten years or more, and 60 days for any other offence; on its expiry the accused "shall be released on bail" if he is prepared to and does furnish bail. In M. Ravindran v. Intelligence Officer, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (2020), the Supreme Court held that once the accused applies for default bail after the period expires, the prosecution cannot defeat that right by filing a charge-sheet or complaint later.
The law
Section 187 B.N.S.S. (Procedure when investigation cannot be completed in twenty-four hours) replaces Section 167 of the old CrPC. Its key parts are:
- Section 187(1): if investigation cannot be completed within the 24 hours fixed by Section 58, the police must send the case diary entries to the nearest Magistrate and forward the accused.
- Section 187(2): the Magistrate may authorise detention in such custody as he thinks fit for not more than fifteen days in the whole, or in parts, at any time during the initial forty days or sixty days of the total detention period of sixty or ninety days.
- Section 187(3): detention beyond fifteen days may be authorised on adequate grounds, but never for a total exceeding 90 days or 60 days as above. On expiry, the accused shall be released on bail if he is prepared to and does furnish bail; such release is treated as bail under Chapter XXXV.
- Explanation I: even after the period expires, the accused stays in custody so long as he does not furnish bail.
The 60-day and 90-day periods
| Offence under investigation | Maximum total custody before default bail |
|---|---|
| Punishable with death, imprisonment for life, or imprisonment for ten years or more | 90 days |
| Any other offence | 60 days |
| Special laws (for example, certain offences under Section 36A(4) of the NDPS Act, 1985) | As the special law provides (180 days in the NDPS provision applied in M. Ravindran) |
The leading case
M. Ravindran v. Intelligence Officer, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, Supreme Court of India, 26 October 2020; bench of U.U. Lalit, Mohan M. Shantanagoudar and Vineet Saran, JJ. The accused, held for an NDPS offence, completed 180 days in custody on 31 January 2019 and applied for default bail at 10:30 a.m. on 1 February 2019. During the hearing that afternoon, at 4:25 p.m., the agency filed an additional complaint. The Supreme Court restored the trial court's grant of default bail and held that:
- once the accused files an application for default bail after the period expires, he is deemed to have "availed of" the right, and the court must release him on bail without unnecessary delay;
- the right remains enforceable even if a charge-sheet, complaint or report seeking extension of time is filed afterwards, or while the bail application is pending;
- but if the accused does not apply when the right accrues and a charge-sheet or extension report is filed first, the right is extinguished.
Example
Farhan is arrested for cheating under Section 318(4) B.N.S., which is punishable with up to seven years. As the offence is not punishable with ten years or more, the limit is 60 days. On day 61 no police report has been filed, and Farhan applies for default bail in the morning, offering to furnish bail. The police file their report that afternoon. Following M. Ravindran, the late filing cannot defeat Farhan's right, and he must be released once he furnishes the bail ordered. Had Farhan waited and the report been filed before he applied, his right to default bail would have been lost.
Points to remember
Default bail does not depend on the merits and is not a finding of innocence, and release follows only when the accused applies and furnishes bail. M. Ravindran was decided under Section 167(2) of the old CrPC; Section 187(3) B.N.S.S. keeps the same 60-day and 90-day limits. For the full bail chapter, see B.N.S.S.: Complete Notes.
Exam point
Section 187(3) B.N.S.S.: 90 days (death, life or ten years or more) or 60 days (other offences); if no police report by then and the accused applies and furnishes bail, he must be released. A report filed after the application cannot defeat the right (M. Ravindran, 2020).
