The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has appealed to the Supreme Court against bail default bail granted to advocate Sudha Bharadwaj, who has been in jail for over two years in the Bhima Koregaon case.
- The Bombay High Court had upheld Ms. Bhardwaj’s right to personal liberty. The NIA court did not have the jurisdiction to extend detention beyond 90 days, the High Court said in its bail order on December 1.
What is Default Bail?
- A Supreme Court bench led by Justice U.U. Lalit had held that an accused, irrespective of the merits of the case against him, should be granted “default” or “complusive” bail if the investigating agency does not complete the probe within a prescribed time limit. (Source: The Hindu)
- The bench referred to how “in England, even a person accused of grave offences such as treason could not be indefinitely detained in prison till commencement of the trial”.
- The Supreme Court held that an accused has an “indefeasible right” to default bail under Section 167(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure if the probe agency failed to complete the investigation on time.
- Under Section 167, an accused can be detained in custody for a maximum of 90 days for a crime punishable with death, life imprisonment or a sentence of over 10 years. It is 60 days of detention if the investigation relates to any other offence.
- In some special statutes such as the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, the period of detention can extend to 180 days.
- The right of default bail is lost, once chargesheet is filed.
Reference: The Hindu
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