Section 82 CrPC: Proclamation for Person Absconding and Section 84 BNSS
A court may issue a proclamation requiring a person to appear when a warrant has been issued and the court has reason to believe that the person is absconding or concealing themselves to prevent execution of that warrant. The current corresponding provision is Section 84 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS).
Meaning and conditions for proclamation
Under Section 82(1) CrPC and Section 84(1) BNSS, a court must have issued a warrant against the person and have reason to believe that the person has absconded or is concealing themselves so that the warrant cannot be executed. The court may then issue a written proclamation requiring appearance at a specified place and time, allowing not less than 30 days from the date of publication.
The expression absconding refers, in this context, to evading the execution of a court warrant. A proclamation is a judicial process to compel appearance; it is not, by itself, a conviction or a finding of guilt.
How a proclamation must be published
Section 82(2) CrPC and Section 84(2) BNSS prescribe the following publication requirements:
- Publicly read the proclamation at a conspicuous place in the town or village where the person ordinarily resides.
- Affix it to a conspicuous part of the person's house or homestead, or to a conspicuous place in that town or village.
- Affix a copy to a conspicuous part of the courthouse.
- The court may additionally direct publication in a daily newspaper circulating in the place of ordinary residence; newspaper publication is discretionary, not a substitute for the mandatory steps.
Under subsection (3) of each provision, the issuing court's written statement recording due publication on a specified day in the mandatory manner is conclusive evidence of compliance with the prescribed publication requirements and of the publication date.
Who can be declared a proclaimed offender?
Section 82(4) CrPC permitted a court, after such inquiry as it thought fit, to declare a non-appearing accused a proclaimed offender when the proclamation concerned specified offences under the Indian Penal Code, 1860. These were Sections 302, 304, 364, 367, 382, 392, 393, 394, 395, 396, 397, 398, 399, 400, 402, 436, 449, 459 and 460. Subsections (4) and (5) were inserted by Act 25 of 2005, Section 12, effective 23 June 2006.
Section 84(4) BNSS instead covers an accused person facing an offence punishable with imprisonment of 10 years or more, imprisonment for life, or death under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 or any other law in force. If the person fails to appear as proclaimed, the court may, after appropriate inquiry, declare that person a proclaimed offender. Subsection (5) applies the prescribed publication and evidentiary rules to that declaration.
Being a person against whom a proclamation is issued and being formally declared a proclaimed offender are therefore distinct legal situations.
Consequences of non-appearance and attachment of property
Under Section 85 BNSS (corresponding to Section 83 CrPC), the court may, for reasons recorded in writing, order attachment of movable or immovable property belonging to the proclaimed person, subject to statutory conditions. In specified circumstances involving likely disposal or removal of property, attachment may be ordered simultaneously with the proclamation.
Section 209 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS) provides punishment for failure to appear under a Section 84(1) BNSS proclamation: imprisonment up to three years, or fine, or both, or community service. Where the person has been declared a proclaimed offender under Section 84(4), punishment may extend to seven years' imprisonment and a fine. The corresponding earlier offence was under Section 174A IPC.
Other related provisions include BNSS Section 86 (identification and attachment of property of a proclaimed person), Section 87 (claims and objections), Section 88 (release, sale and restoration) and Section 89 (appeal against rejection of restoration).
Practical points for parties and legal practitioners
- Examine the warrant and the court's recorded basis for believing that the person has absconded or concealed themselves.
- Verify the date of publication, the appearance deadline and compliance with the required modes of publication.
- Distinguish an ordinary proclamation from a formal declaration of proclaimed-offender status.
- Review the applicable transitional law where the investigation, inquiry, trial, application or appeal was pending before 1 July 2024.
- Seek appropriate legal advice promptly if a proclamation, attachment order or declaration has been issued.
Official legal texts and further reading
For authoritative statutory wording, consult the India Code legislative database, the BNSS, 2023 (government-hosted PDF), and the BNS statutory text (NCRB government portal). The relevant provisions are CrPC Section 82, BNSS Sections 84 to 89 and 531, and BNS Section 209.
This article provides general legal information. The applicable statute and procedural position depend on the facts and stage of a particular case.