High Court of Orissa Nullifies 120-Day Filing Limit, Reaffirms 90-Day Statutory Period under Section 187 of BNSS for Default Bail - 2025-11-24

The 90-Day Deadline: High Court Clarifies Default Bail Rules Under the New BNSS Regime

In a significant ruling clarifying the transition from colonial-era criminal procedure to the new Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita ( BNSS ), 2023, the High Court of Orissa at Cuttack has settled a lingering dispute regarding investigation timelines and default bail rights. Justice A.K. Mohapatra has ruled that the 90-day statutory period for filing a charge-sheet, as stipulated in Section 187 of the BNSS , remains absolute, effectively striking down arguments that relied on expired state-specific amendments to the erstwhile Code of Criminal Procedure (Cr.P.C.).

The Dispute: A Tale of Two Timelines

The case involved petitioners Vicky Kumar @ Kashyap and another, who were arrested on May 10, 2025, in connection with a cyber-fraud case registered at the Balasore Cyber Police Station . With no charge-sheet filed by the 90-day mark, the petitioners moved for default bail under Section 187(3) of the BNSS .

The conflict arose when the trial court rejected their plea, citing an ongoing Odisha-specific amendment to the Cr.P.C. that had previously extended the investigation period for certain serious offenses to 120 days. The trial court , relying on this amendment and subsequent government notifications, held that the investigation was still within the lawful time limit.

Arguments at the Bar

Counsel for the petitioners argued that the enactment of the BNSS , 2023, and the formal repeal of the Cr.P.C., 1973, rendered any previous state-specific amendments void. They contended that Section 531 of the BNSS provided no shelter for state-level deviations that pre-dated the new code, and therefore, an "indefeasible right" to bail had accrued the moment the 90-day window closed on August 9, 2025.

Conversely, the State of Odisha maintained that the Odisha Amendment of 1997 remained a valid extension even under the new legal framework. They argued that the spirit of the state’s legislative additions to criminal procedure should be read alongside the BNSS to maintain continuity in the administration of justice.

The Judicial Analysis

Justice A.K. Mohapatra, in his analysis, focused on the "repeal and savings" clause of the BNSS . He clarified that the repeal of the Cr.P.C. under Section 531 was comprehensive.

"By operation of Section 531 (1), while the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 was repealed, the effect of the State Amendment including Odisha Act 11 of 1997 gets obliterated," the Court observed. The ruling emphasized that the BNSS is now the governing procedural statute and that notifications issued during the transition period were meant to clarify the nomenclature of the new law, not to revive defunct state amendments.

Key Observations

The High Court’s ruling provides critical guidance for future proceedings:

• "In view of the aforesaid analysis, this Court has no hesitation in coming to a conclusion that the Odisha Amendment vide Act 11 of 1997 has also been repealed along with the Parent Act, i.e. Cr.P.C., 1973."
• "The period of limitation for filing of the charge-sheet for the purpose of Section 187 of BNSS would be 90 days."
• "The notification dated 27.09.2024 and 16.07.2024 were general in nature and the same were in the context of replacing the name of the repealed statute... Such notification does not interfere in any manner with either Section 187 of the BNSS , 2023."

Final Outcome

The High Court quashed the order of the trial court and remanded the matter back for fresh consideration. The trial court has been directed to re-evaluate the petitioners' bail plea within two weeks, strictly applying the 90-day statutory limit.

For criminal practitioners and the public alike, this judgment serves as an important reminder: while the transition to BNSS is complex, the fundamental rights governing personal liberty, such as default bail, remain tethered to the clear, standardized timelines of the new code, unimpeded by old state-specific exceptions that were left behind in the repeal of the Cr.P.C.