Arrest Warrants in Criminal Cases

Question 2: The second question was: I am an injured witness, I went abroad for work, my case is proceeding, I was called, called, called, and finally an arrest warrant was issued against me. Now I want to come on a one-month or two-month or fifteen-day leave, what should I do? Solution: Well, this has a simple solution: before coming, tell your lawyer, who's fighting your case there, to file an application in court that this witness, whose warrants were issued, resides abroad for work, is ready to come on such-and-such date, but he's coming on fifteen days' or one month's leave, therefore the accused should be bound, the defence should be bound, that when he comes his testimony should be completed, because if he goes back after his leave, his coming back in the near future will become difficult. First, tell your lawyer to file this application. After filing, you come on that date, the court will fully cooperate with you, the court will compel the accused persons so that your statement is recorded and you're cross-examined, so you're discharged from your obligations, that the testimony you had to give as a witness, you discharge that burden, you lift that burden off yourself, that my only obligation was to testify in court and answer the accused's questions, and I've done that. There's no problem in this.

Question 3: The third question was: it was a criminal case, my bail was granted, I went abroad, my arrest warrant was issued, and in the end I was declared a proclaimed offender, now I want to go back, I want to face the case, please tell me what to do. Solution: Well, first, as I've already said, if no case had started yet, if your challan wasn't submitted yet, you should have filed an application in the relevant court that I am an accused in this case, the challan hasn't been submitted, I want to go abroad for work, I be permitted, and when the court calls me I'll come, that's number one. If the case is already proceeding, you should have filed an application in court requesting permanent exemption from attendance, that you want to go abroad for work, and gone with permission, now you didn't go with permission. Now the first question that arises is, who granted you bail? Now what's the nature of your case? Is your challan proceeding before a magistrate, is your case in a magistrate's court, is your case in a Sessions court, is your case in a special court, could be anti-corruption, terrorism court, anything, first come clean about which forum your case is proceeding in. You got bail from the same forum where the case is proceeding, you got bail from the same court where the case is proceeding, then that court has the authority to cancel your bail in your absence. For this, tell your lawyer to first check whether I've been declared a proclaimed offender, or has my bail also been cancelled, or just declared a proclaimed offender. If your lawyer checks and tells you your bail has been cancelled and you've also been declared a proclaimed offender, number one, then upon returning from abroad, first apply for pre-arrest bail, saying, sir, my bail was granted, I went abroad for work, to earn a living for my wife and children, I wasn't deliberately absent, it wasn't within my control since I was working abroad, my bail was already granted on merit earlier, my bail was cancelled due to my absence, my unavailability, I request bail be granted again. The Sessions court will grant you interim bail, and after granting interim bail, once you satisfy them that my bail was already granted on merit, it was cancelled due to absence, now I won't be absent, the court will grant you bail. Once the court grants you bail, through your lawyer, wherever the case is proceeding, you need to file an application under Section 75 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, that the proceedings taken against me under Section 87 or 88 be withdrawn, I have appeared, and I will not be absent again. If I am absent, I'll take permission and exemption from the court beforehand. Your permanent arrest warrants will be withdrawn, and after that you'll face the trial. That was the case if your bail is cancelled. Now if your bail was not cancelled but only your permanent arrest warrants were issued, you were declared a proclaimed offender, proceedings under 87 or 88 have already taken place, then for this, when you return from abroad, tell your lawyer to keep your Section 75 application ready, that I'll come straight from the airport to you, I'll go to court with you, going to court, your arrest warrants will be withdrawn, new surety bonds may be taken from you, whatever the situation may be, or they may not be, but it often happens that the authority to cancel bonds lies with the trial court, even if a higher court had granted the bail, then you'll face that.

Now the third question was: I am an injured witness in a case, and in the same case the opposing party got a cross-version registered, in which I am the accused, or the cross-version was dismissed and a private criminal complaint was filed, in which I am the accused, meaning you are an injured witness in one case and the accused in another, both cases are in the same court, then the same procedure I described earlier applies, if bail wasn't cancelled, file a Section 75 application, if bail was cancelled, first get bail, and after getting bail, get your permanent arrest warrants cancelled. Now this whole procedure heavily involves the court's discretion. Now the law says that discretionary powers will never be used by the court arbitrarily, like a village council, discretionary powers will always be used by the court lawfully. Exemption from attendance is a discretionary power, release on bail is a discretionary power, granting bail is a discretionary power, the court will decide these matters at its discretion while keeping the law in view. Now the law says a case can proceed in the accused's absence if the court is satisfied that the accused is absent and the court is satisfied that this absence will not cause delay or prolong the proceedings, then it can grant you exemption. I hope I have answered these questions for you.