Law and You > Criminal Laws > Indian Penal Code > Contempts of the Lawful Authority of Public Servants
Chapter X of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 consisting of Sections 172 to 190 deals with contempts of the lawful authority of public servants
Section 172: Indian Penal Code:
Absconding to avoid service of summons or other proceedings:
Whoever absconds in order to avoid being served with a summons, notice or order proceeding from any public servant legally competent, as such public servant, to issue such summons, notice or order, shall be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to one month, or with fine which may extend to five hundred rupees, or with both;
or, if the summons or notice or order is to attend in person or by agent, or to produce a document or electronic record in a Court of Justice, with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees, or with both.
Note:
- As per Section 191 (1) (a) (i) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 “No court should take cognizance of any offence punishable under Section 172 to 188 (both inclusive) of the IPC, except on complaint in writing of the “public servant concerned” or some other public servant to whom he is administratively subordinate”.
- The offence is non-cognizable, bailable, non-compoundable, and triable by any magistrate.
Meaning of the word “absconds”:
The word abscond means to leave hurriedly and secretly, typically to escape from custody or avoid arrest. When a person is hiding from his place of residence, he is said to be ‘absconding’.
In K.T.M.S. Abdul Kader v. Union of India, 1977 CrLJ 1708 case, a person may hide even in a place of residence or away from it and in either case, he would be absconding when he hides himself.
In Gundappa v. State of Karnataka, 1977 Cr LJ (NOC) (Kant.) case, the Court held that a person who has gone abroad long before issue of warrant cannot be said to have absconded or concealed himself. No proclamation ad attachment against him under Section 82 of the Code of criminal procedure, 1973 can be issued.
In Sriniwass Ayyangar , (1881) 4 Mad 393 (397) case, the Court held that if a person having concealed himself before process issues, continues to do so after it is issued, he absconds.
Meaning of words summons, notice, and order:
- Summons is a legal document issued from the office of the court of Justice calling upon the person to whom it is directed to attend before a Judge or officer of court at a specified time for certain purpose.
- Notice is a means of information, an advice, or written warning, in more or less standard shape, intended to apprise a person of some proceeding in which his interest is involved. Thus notice is a proceeding to bring a fact to the knowledge of the person which is his right to know it.
- Order covers commands or directions that something shall be done, discontinued or suffered, but it does not include “sentence” and “findings”.
Notes:
A warrant is not an order to the accused, but it is an order to the police to arrest the person. Hence this Section is not applicable in the case of warrant of arrest. In Annawadin (1923) 1 Ran 218 case, the Court held that it is not an offence under this Section to avoid arrest under a warrant.
If the summons, notice, or order is already served on a person, then there is no question of applying Section 172 of IPC. In State of U. P. v. Hem Narain Singh, AIR 1953 All 200, case the accused was served with a notice to appear before Panchayati Adalat but he didn’t turn, hence the Panchayati Adalat convicted him under Section 172 of IPC. The High Court held that since he has already been served with a notice to appear, Section 172 would not be attracted.
Essential Ingredient of the Offence Under Section 172 of IPC:
- The process is issued by any public servant authorized to issue such process;
- The accused absconded to avoid service of summons, notice, or other process;
- The “public servant concerned” or some other public servant to whom he is administratively subordinate” complaints about it.
Section 172 of the IPC provides the punishment if the person absconds intentionally from a place in order to avoid being served with the summons.
Punishment:
- The punishment under Section 172 of the Code, is usually simple imprisonment which may extend to one month, or with fine which may extend to five hundred rupees, or with both.
- In aggravated form, if the summons or notice or order is to attend in person or by an agent or to produce a document or electronic record in a Court of Justice, and the person fails to comply the summons or notice or order then the punishment is with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees, or with both.
Section 173: Indian Penal Code:
Preventing service of summons or other proceeding, or preventing publication thereof:
Whoever in any manner intentionally prevents the serving on himself, or on any other person, of any summons, notice or order proceeding from any public servant legally competent, such public servant, to issue such summons, notice or order,
or intentionally prevents the lawful affixing to any place of any such summons, notice or order,
or intentionally removes any such summons, notice or order from any place to which it is lawfully affixed,
or intentionally prevents the lawful making of any proclamation, under the authority of any public servant legally competent, as such public servant, to direct such proclamation to be made,
Shall be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to one month, or with fine which may extend to five hundred rupees, or with both;
or, if the summons, notice, order or proclamation is to attend in person or by agent, or to produce a document or electronic record1 in a Court of Justice, with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees, or with both.
This section punishes intentional prevention of service of summons, notice, or order.
In Budhua v. Emperor, AIR 1928 All 118 case, a man who gets away from the serving officer, with the obvious intention of not allowing him to hold any communication with him at all and shuts himself in his house, is intentionally preventing service either by tender or by delivery.
Acts amounting to preventing of service of summons, notice, and order:
- A refusal to sign a summons
- A refusal to receive summons
- A refusal by witness to receive summons
- A refusal to receive notice by police officer under Section 160 of CrPC
- A refusal to accept subpoena
- Throwing down summons after service
- A prevention to the lawful affixing of summons, notice, or order to any place
- A removal of lawfully affixed summons, notice, or order.
- A prevention to the lawful making of any proclamation, under the authority of any public servant legally competent.
Punishment:
- The punishment under Section 173 of the Code, is usually simple imprisonment which may extend to one month, or with fine which may extend to five hundred rupees, or with both.
- In aggravated form, if the summons or notice or order or proclamation is to attend in person or by agent, or to produce a document or electronic record in a Court of Justice, and the person fails to comply the summons or notice or order then the punishment is with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees, or with both.
Section 174: Indian Penal Code:
Non-attendance in obedience to an order from public servant:
Whoever, being legally bound to attend in person or by an agent at a certain place and time in obedience to a summons, notice, order, or proclamation proceeding from any public servant legally competent, as such public servant, to issue the same, intentionally omits to attend at that place or time, or departs from the place where he is bound to attend before the time at which it is lawful for him to depart, shall be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to one month, or with fine which may extend to five hundred rupees, or with both;
or, if the summons, notice, order or proclamation is to attend in person or by agent in a Court of Justice, with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees, or with both.
Illustrations:
(a) A, being legally bound to appear before the High Court at Calcutta, in obedience to a subpoena issuing from that Court, intentionally omits to appear. A has committed the offence defined in this section.
(b) A, being legally bound to appear before a District Judge, as a witness, in obedience to a summons issued by that District Judge intentionally omits to appear. A has committed the offence defined in this section.
Meaning of “legally bound to attend”:
A person who has been served a summons, a notice, or an order by any public servant legally competent is legally bound to attend.
Meaning of “appearance through Agent”:
The person can appear personally or through his agent i.e. counsel.
In Durgadas rakhit v. Umesh Chandra Sen, 5 Cal WN 131 case, the Court observed that where an accused who had been asked to appear and plead to a charge appears by agent and requests that his personal appearance should be dispensed with under Section 205 of CrPC, 1973, it will not be an exercise of proper discretion to charge the accused for contempt under Section 174, of IPC. He should be asked to appear personally on or within a day named and if he failed to appear, their proceedings may be taken for contempt. An accused is entitled to move the Chief Judicial Magistrate and the High Court to direct the magistrate to dispense ith his personal appearance and such application cannot make the appearance by agent as contempt of the Court or aggravate the contempt, if any.
Ingredients of the Offence:
- The person is legally bound to appear in person or through agent and refused or intentionally omitted to attend
- His failure to appear at specified place, or
- His failure to appear at specified time, or
- His failure to appear before specified legal authority or public functionary, or
- His departure of the person from the place where he is bound to attend before the time at which it is lawful for him to depart
To convict a person under this Section, the summons, notice, or order should have all the necessary ingredients as specified in CrPC, 1973. The summons, notice, or order should clearly mention whether personal appearance of the person is required. There should not be any defect in the served summons, notice, or order. In Hukam Singh v. Emperor, AIR 1926 All 474, case the Court held that when subpoena does not state definite place for attendance, disobedience thereof is not an offence.
Punishment:
- The punishment under Section 174 of the Code, is usually simple imprisonment which may extend to one month, or with fine which may extend to five hundred rupees, or with both.
- In aggravated form, if the summons or notice or order or proclamation is to attend in person or by agent, or to produce a document or electronic record in a Court of Justice, and the person fails to comply the summons or notice or order then the punishment is with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees, or with both.
Section 174 A: Indian Penal Code:
Whoever fails to appear at the specified place and the specified time as required by a proclamation published under sub-section (1) of section 82 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years or with fine or with both, 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.
Section 174 A was inserted by the 2005 amendment. Section 174 A deals with nonappearance in response to proclamation provided under Subsection 1 of Section 82 of the Code of criminal procedure. Section 82 of the criminal procedure code deals with the proclamation for person absconding.
Section 82 Subsection 1 lays of CrPC down that “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”.
Section 82 Subsection 4 of CrPC lays down that “Where a proclamation published under Sub-Section (1) is in respect of a person accused of an offence punishable under section 302, 304, 364, 367, 382, 392, 393, 394, 395, 396, 397, 398, 399, 400, 402, 436, 449, 459 or 460 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860) 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”.
Punishment:
- When the person against whom order of proclamation is issued under Section 82 Subsection 1 of CrPC, fails to appear, then he shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years or with fine or with both.
- When the person against whom order of proclamation is issued under Section 82 Subsection 4 of CrPC, fails to appear, then he shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to seven years and shall also be liable to fine.
- Since the punishment is hard people fear and appear to the proceedings on time.
In Deepak Saha v State, 2017 SCC OnLine Del 6920cse, the Court held that the proceeding under section 174 A of the IPC could be only started if the person is declared as a proclaimed offender and section 174 A of the IPC cannot be added by the investigating officer before declaring the person to be proclaimed offender.
In Iqbal v. State of Uttar Pradesh, 2013 CrLJ 1332 (All) case, the Court held that if investigating officer submits charge sheet without arresting accused person (unless he is on bail). It can be submitted only if he has been declared an absconder and the case under Section 174 A of the IPC has also been registered as a result of this proclamation.