BNS Section 209: Non-Appearance In Response To A Proclamation Under Section 84 Of Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023

Definition of BNS Section 209

Section 209 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023 states:
“Whoever fails to appear at the specified place and the specified time as required by a proclamation published under sub-section (1) of section 84 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years, or with fine, or with both, or with community service, and where a declaration has been made under sub-section (4) of that section pronouncing him as a proclaimed offender, he shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to seven years and shall also be liable to fine.”

Explanation and Illustration of Section 209 (Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023)

Section 209 deals with non-attendance as against the mandate of a proclamation made by a court order. Let us break down this section to better understand.

It refers to persons who have failed to appear at a place and time specified as mandated in a proclamation published under sub-section (1) of section 84 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023. The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita is a replacement for the Indian Civil Code, just as the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita is a replacement for the Indian Penal Code. Let us take a look at what section 84(1) of the BNSS states:

“If any Court has reason to believe (whether after taking evidence or not) that any person against whom a warrant has been issued by it has absconded or is concealing himself so that such warrant cannot be executed, such Court may publish a written proclamation requiring him to appear at a specified place and at a specified time not less than thirty days from the date of publishing such proclamation. “

In other words, if a person, against whom a warrant has been issued, chooses to ignore the requirements ordered in the proclamation and absconds or conceals himself and the court has reason to believe that he or she is doing so in order to avoid being taken into custody and produced in front of the issuing authority by the police, then the court can publish a proclamation requiring the person in question to appear before the court within 30 days from the date of publishing the proclamation.

A proclamation is a public announcement of a public directive. The purpose of publishing a proclamation is two fold. Firstly, to give the person in question the benefit of doubt, that he or she is genuinely not available at the address of delivering the summons. A public proclamation is a chance for them to notice the court order and obey its summons. But such a proclamation is also an alert to the public that such a person is wanted in connection with certain court proceedings and anyone aware of the person’s whereabouts must either inform them, and if they have a reason to believe that the person is unlikely to cooperate with the proclamation despite being made aware, then the authorities must be informed about their whereabouts immediately.

So when a proclamation is issued by the court under the provisions of Section 84 of the BNSS, and the person in question fails to appear before the judge within a stipulated deadline of thirty days from the date of the proclamation, then he or she will be declared an offender under the provisions of Sec 209. It must be understood here that this offence will be treated separately from the case for which the person has been originally summoned. This is to say that it doesn’t matter if the person in question is guilty or innocent in the case for which he or she was originally summoned. If he or she is proven guilty, then it will be in addition to the provisions under Section 209. In fact, it doesn’t matter even if the person was just a witness in that case. The act of not appearing in accordance to a proclamation made under the provisions of Section 84(1) of the BNSS itself is an offence and the person will be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years, or with fine, or with both, or with community service,

Further, it also mentions Section 84(4). Section 84(4) states that:

“Where a proclamation published under sub-section (1) is in respect of a person accused of an offence which is made punishable with imprisonment of ten years or more, or imprisonment for life or with death under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 or under any other law for the time being in force, and such person fails to appear at the specified place and time required by the proclamation, the Court may, after making such inquiry as it thinks fit, pronounce him a proclaimed offender and make a declaration to that effect.”

In other words, it states that if the proclamation is made for a person accused of any crime under the BNS which is punishable with imprisonment of ten years or more, including life imprisonment, or a death sentence and the person does not honour the stipulated deadline of 30 days, then he or she shall be declared as a proclaimed offender. This means that whether the person is guilty or not in the case for which the summons was made. He will be declared a proclaimed offender, and such a proclaimed offender will be punishable under the provisions of section 209 with imprisonment for a term which may extend to seven years and shall also be liable to fine.

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