BNS Section 269: Failure By Person Released On Bail Bond Or Bond To Appear In Court

Explanation and Illustration of BNS Section 269

This section is applicable to any person within the sovereign borders of India, whether citizen, resident or otherwise. It deals with the offence of disobeying terms of a bail bond. Let us break down the section to get a better understanding of it.

Offence

The purpose of bail is to stand by the principle of ‘innocent until proven guilty.’ In fact, it is often repeated that ‘Bail is the rule. Jail is the exception.’ Exceptions should ideally only be made when a person is known or proven to be a flight risk or is a threat or a danger to those around him or her on account of having been accused of a very serious crime. In all other cases, as long as a person is not convicted by a court of law, they are to be allowed to be free from custody. However, there are conditions that a court sets, to ensure that the person being let out on bail reciprocates on the good faith shown by the court and shall readily present themselves whenever required by court. The conditions of bail usually vary from case to case. But the two most common conditions for a bail bond are:

Bond surety - The person being granted bail has to deposit a certain sum of money with a public officer who shall hold that money as a surety until the case has been adjourned.

Regular appearance - The person being granted bail has to appear in front of the judge during fixed intervals to ensure that they are present and have no intention of taking flight from prosecution.

As long as a person meets the conditions of bail, he or she shall continue to enjoy the confidence of the court. While the surety is taken before the bail is granted, the second condition is the one that the person on bail has to maintain throughout the course of the bail. If a person fails to appear at the court at the appointed date and time without sufficient cause, then he or she shall be considered an offender under the provisions of section 269. Further, it clarifies that even if the person has a valid reason for having missed the court appointment, the burden of proving it shall lie upon him. In other words, whatever the reason for the failure to meet the conditions, the person who is on bail has to provide proof to the satisfaction of the court.

Punishment

Any person who has been granted bail fails to meet the conditions of the bail shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to one year, or with fine, or with both. So not only will the person’s bail be cancelled, but they will also serve a year in jail for skipping the bail conditions.

Further, the section clarifies that the punishment for not meeting bail conditions shall be:

in addition to the punishment to which the offender would be liable on a conviction for the offence with which he has been charged: So if a person who has skipped the bail condition is convicted of the crime and sentenced to two years in jail. He will serve a total of three years, with an additional one year for skipping bail. And if he acquitted of the crime, he will still serve one year in jail for skipping bail bond.

without prejudice to the power of the Court to order forfeiture of the bond: the surety that has been paid for the bail shall not be refundable to the person who has skipped bail.

The above actions may not be an offence under this section if:

The offender can prove that the reason for skipping bail was valid.

Illustration

Z has been charged with petty theft. He is granted bail at a bond of ₹ 5,000 and is ordered to appear before the court on the 15th of every month. However, Z fails to appear before the court three months later. Z is an offender under section 269. However, Z appears before the judge the next day and produces a security camera recording of him meeting with an accident on the way to the court. Z is exempted from being punished under Section 269.