Prayagraj , The Allahabad High Court has issued a detailed step-by-step procedure for conducting criminal trials in the absence of a proclaimed offender according to section 356 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita , 2023.
Justice Praveen Kumar Giri termed this provision as a landmark for introducing the concept of ‘trial in absentia’ into the Indian criminal justice system.
The court was dealing with an application filed under Section 528 BNSS by a person named Ravi alias Ravindra Singh, who sought quashing of a non-bailable warrant issued against him by an Agra court.
Section 356 BNSS allows a court to proceed with the trial or judgement of an accused person who has been declared a proclaimed offender and is deliberately evading arrest.
The court categorically observed that if a person, declared as a proclaimed offender, absconds to evade trial and there is no immediate prospect of arresting him, it is legally deemed to operate as a ‘waiver’ of their right to be present and tried in person.
To ensure speedy justice, Justice Giri further streamlined the procedure to prosecute such an absconder and to complete the trial as specified under section 356 BNSS. Firstly, the court can record evidence, examine witnesses, and pronounce a judgement even if the accused is not physically present.
To ensure transparency and accuracy, depositions and examinations of witnesses should be recorded using audio-video electronic means, such as mobile phones. If the absconding accused does not have lawyer, the court must provide an advocate for their defence at the expense of the state.
The trial cannot commence until at least 90 days have passed since the framing of charges. At least two consecutive arrest warrants must be issued with an interval of at least 30 days between them.
The court said that a notice must be published in a national or local daily newspaper circulating in the area of the accused’s last known residence. The court must inform the accused’s relatives or friends about the commencement of the trial.
Trial information must be displayed at a conspicuous part of the accused’s house and at the local police station.
Furthermore, the court clarified that under Section 356 BNSS, an appeal against a conviction in such trials shall only be entertained if the offender presents himself before the appellate court with an absolute limitation period of three years from the date of judgment.
The applicant was earlier granted bail by the high court in 2021. While charges were framed in his presence in February 2024, he subsequently failed to appear before the trial court after October 2024.
Hence, for his continuous absence, non-bailable warrants were issued against him and eventually, a proclamation under Section 82 and attachment orders under Section 83 CrPC were also passed against him.
While the court ultimately kept the operation of the impugned NBW in abeyance for two months and gave liberty to the trial court to pass an appropriate order in the event the accused does not cooperate in the trial at every stage, the bench took a broader view of the systemic delays caused by absconding accused persons.
The court in its judgment dated May 5 clarified that at all stages, before a trial in absentia can commence, it must be ensured that all standard coercive measures have been exhausted.
This would include issuing non-bailable warrants , publishing proclamations, attaching the absconder’s properties under section 85 BNSS and formally prosecuting them under Section 209 BNS for evading court orders.
Only after these steps are exhausted and an amicus curiae is appointed to represent the absent accused. The high court clarified, the courts can invoke section 356 BNSS to frame charges and conclude the trial.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
