1.What is Bail?
Ans. Bail is a order or permission given by the court that allows a person accused of a crime to stay out of jail while waiting for their trial. Instead of keeping the accused in prison, the court allows them to go home by providing some guarantee (like money or personal promise) that they will attend court when required.
Example:
Suppose Mr. Raj is accused of theft. After his arrest, he can apply for bail. If the court grants bail, he will not stay in jail but must come to court on the given dates.
2.How Many Types of Bail are There under BNS ?
In simple words, there are two main types of bail in Indian law:
1. Regular Bail For Bailable Offense
If the offense is minor and punishable by a small punishment (like a fine or short jail time), the law says the person has the right to get bail.The police or court must grant bail without much argument.
Example:
A person caught for a small mistake, like disturbing public peace, is entitled to regular bail easily.
2. Non-Bailable Bail for Non-Bailable Offense
For serious crimes (like murder, robbery), getting bail is not a right. The court may decide whether grant or not to grant bail.The court carefully checks if the accused may run away or disturb the investigation before granting bail.
Example:
Mr. Raj is accused of a serious crime like murder. He applies for non-bailable bail, and the court examines the facts before allowing him to go home
*Important Note: Surety
In many cases, the court asks the accused to give a surety — this means someone (like a family member) promises to pay a certain amount of money if the accused doesn’t appear in court.
3. Other Kinds of bail which available in India but not explicitly mention under BNSS are
i.Interim Bail
Interim Bail is a temporary relief granted by the court between arrest and final bail decision. It provides immediate relief, especially when the accused requires medical care, must attend urgent personal matters, or faces hardship due to detention.
Duration: Short-term, pending final bail decision.
Conditions: Often stricter than regular bail.
Purpose: To prevent unnecessary detention while awaiting the main bail application.
Legal Basis:
Though not explicitly defined in the BNSS (replacing CrPC), courts grant interim bail under Sections 480–483 of BNSS. These provisions empower Magistrates, High Courts, and Sessions Courts to grant temporary bail based on the accused’s likelihood to appear in court and absence of flight risk.
ii.Default Bail
Under Section 167 BNSS, if a chargesheet is not filed within 60 or 90 days (based on the offense), the accused is entitled to default bail, which the court must grant without discretion.
iii.Medical Bail
Granted solely on medical grounds, focusing on the accused’s urgent health needs without assessing the offense’s merits.
Grounds for Bail (Bailable & Non-Bailable Offenses)
Presumption of innocence
Minor nature of offense
No threat of serious punishment (i.e., death, life imprisonment, or ≥10 years)
These factors guide courts in granting bail.
iv. Anticipatory Bail
It applies when a person has reason to believe that they may be arrested for committing a non-bailable offense and seeks the court’s protection in advance. In other words Anticipatory Bail means an order of the court directing that in the event of the applicant’s arrest for a non-bailable offense, they shall be released on bail.It is a safeguard against arbitrary arrest by the police.
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