On the basis of category of offences, bail in India can be classified into two types viz. i) Bail in bailable offence (Section 436 Cr.P.C.) and ii) Bail in non-bailable offence (Section 437-439 Cr.P.C.). In bailable offence, bail can be asked as a matter of right and the court will not reject application of bail of applicant and also the Police authority shall not arrest the person charged for bailable offence. On the other hand in non-bailable offence, bail cannot be asked as a matter of right and is granted by court only on its discretion.

Bail in non bailable case is further classified into two types viz. i) Regular Bail (Section 437 & 439 Cr.P.C) and ii) Anticipatory Bail (Section 438 Cr.P.C.). A regular bail is granted when the person has been already arrested meanwhile an anticipatory bail is granted before the person has been arrested when such person has an apprehension or reason to believe that he may be arrested for commission of any non-bailable offence.

Default Bail (Section 167 Cr.P.C.) – When the police fail to complete the investigation within specified period (90 days when the offence is punishable with death, life imprisonment or imprisonment for at least ten years or 60 days for other offences), then the person will get the right to bail and the court shall grant bail to such accused. This kind of bail is known as default bail.

There is no fixed time-limit prescribed in statute to grant bail to any person in India. However, whenever a person apply for bail before JMFC or Court of Sessions his bail application will be heard within a day and therefore, if allowed, then he can get a bail in a day or two. While if the person applies for a bail before the High Court, then generally as per listing rules prescribed in MP High Court Rules a bail application may be listed within three days of filing. This time period is subject to change from High Court to High Court. Therefore, a person bail application will be heard within three days in the High Court.

A bail granted by court is valid till the conclusion of trial subject to fulfillment of the conditions of the bail. The court can cancel the bail if any of the prescribed conditions is breached by the accused.

When bail is granted to the accused, then the accused will be released from the judicial custody (if he is already in custody) or will not be sent to the prison till the conclusion of the trial. However, during the trial the accused shall have to comply with the conditions placed in the bail.

There are multiple grounds on which bail can be granted by the court viz. facts and circumstances does not lead to formation of prima facie opinion indicating guilt of the accused, ingredients of particular offence are not met out, discrepancies in the chargesheet, statements of the witnesses in the chargesheet are contradictory to each other, chargesheet showing faulty investigation by the police authorities. Apart from these the other general grounds may include the character of the accused, nature of the offence, age and gender of the accused etc.

There are numerous grounds for rejection of bail such as when the prima facie evidence shows that the accused has committed the offence, when the nature of offence to which the person is accused of is grave and serious, when the accused has criminal antecedents, when there are chances that the accused will misuse the liberty, when there are chances that the accused shall attempt to tamper the evidence and influence the witness, when there is probability that the accused shall flee from the trial etc.

When a bail application is denied by the court then the accused would be sent to judicial custody i.e., in prison till the conclusion of trial. However, when bail is denied then the accused has right to challenge the order before the appellate court. For e.g., if the bail application is rejected by the Court of Sessions, then the accused can approach the High Court and if the bail is rejected by the High Court, then the accused can approach before the Supreme Court.

An interim bail is granted to an accused for a short period of time for specific purpose and on specific grounds such as for medical treatment, for attending marriage and funerals in the family, and others. At the end of period for which the interim bail is allowed the accused shall again be sent to the judicial custody i.e., in prison.

Yes, a regular bail granted by the court can be cancelled either by the same court if the accused infringes the conditions of bail such as misuse of liberty, interferes in course of investigation, attempts to tamper with evidence or influence the witnesses etc. Bail can also be cancelled on an application by the complainant before the higher court.

If the bail gets cancelled, then the accused shall be sent to judicial custody i.e., in prison till he further gets bail or conclusion of trial, whichever happens is earlier.

Complainant, victim and victim’s close relative can oppose the bail application filed by the accused. It is pertinent to note that the State i.e. the Government will always be there to oppose the bail.

A person can apply for bail as many times as he wish till he gets bail or till the conclusion of trial. However, once a bail is rejected on merits then another bail application can be filed only on new grounds and only after the change in facts and circumstances of the case.

Yes, one can leave the county if he is on bail subject to the conditions attached to the bail. If there are no condition restricting travel to abroad then one can leave India but if there is condition with respect to travelling then one have to take prior permission of the court before travelling to foreign country.

It is a written instrument signed by the accused along with one surety assuring the court that the accused shall appear for trial and if fails, then the accused shall pay a sum of money set by the court.

It is an amount fixed by the court at the time of granting bail. The accused have to get the bail bond signed by a surety who is financially capable to deposit bail amount in the case the accused fails to appear before the trial court.

When an accused is found guilty and convicted by a trial court then an accused can file for ‘suspension of sentence and grant of bail’ at the appellate court. The appellate court shall hear the entire case on merits considering the chargesheet, documentary and other evidence including the statements of witness and may suspend the sentence and grant the bail to the accused.