By Legum Pacific Editorial ·
A common situation
Suppose you are arrested and taken to the police station. The police tell you the investigation will take time. Days pass, and the investigation file has not been sent to a Magistrate.
What does the law say?
The official text explains what must happen when an investigation cannot be completed within the short initial period fixed by section 58. If the officer in charge believes the accusation is well-founded and the investigation cannot be completed within that twenty‑four hour period, the officer must forthwith transmit to the nearest Magistrate a copy of the relevant diary entries and forward the accused to that Magistrate (section 187(1)).
The Magistrate to whom the accused is forwarded may, after taking into consideration whether the accused has not been released on bail or his bail has been cancelled, authorise detention “from time to time” for a term not exceeding fifteen days in the whole, or in parts, at any time during the initial forty days or sixty days out of the detention period of sixty days or ninety days, as the case may be (section 187(2)). If the Magistrate has no jurisdiction to try the case or commit it for trial and considers further detention unnecessary, he may order the accused to be forwarded to a Magistrate having such jurisdiction (section 187(2)).
The Magistrate may authorise detention beyond fifteen days if satisfied that adequate grounds exist for doing so. No Magistrate shall authorise detention under this power for a total period exceeding ninety days where the investigation relates to an offence punishable with death, imprisonment for life or imprisonment for ten years or more; and sixty days where the investigation relates to any other offence. On expiry of the said period of ninety days or sixty days, as the case may be, the accused shall be released on bail if he is prepared to and does furnish bail (section 187(3)).
Explanation I states that notwithstanding the expiry of the period specified in sub‑section (3), the accused shall be detained in custody so long as he does not furnish bail. The Magistrate must record reasons for authorising detention (section 187(7)). A Magistrate shall not authorise detention in police custody under this section unless the accused is produced before him in person for the first time and subsequently every time till the accused remains in the custody of the police; however the Magistrate may extend detention in judicial custody on production of the accused either in person or through audio‑video electronic means (section 187(4)).
Provided that in the case of a woman under eighteen years of age, detention shall be authorised to be in the custody of a remand home or recognised social institution. The law also provides that no person shall be detained otherwise than in a police station under police custody or in prison under judicial custody or in a place declared as prison by the Central Government or the State Government (section 187(4) and provisos).
If a Magistrate other than the Chief Judicial Magistrate makes an order authorising detention, he must forward a copy of his order with reasons to the Chief Judicial Magistrate (section 187(8)).
What if no Magistrate is available nearby?
If a Magistrate is not available, the officer in charge may transmit the diary entry and forward the accused to the nearest Executive Magistrate on whom Magistrate powers have been conferred. That Executive Magistrate may, for reasons to be recorded in writing, authorise detention for a term not exceeding seven days in the aggregate. On expiry of that period the accused shall be released on bail except where a Magistrate competent to do so has ordered further detention. The period of detention under the Executive Magistrate is to be taken into account when computing the longer limits in subsection (3). The Executive Magistrate must transmit the case records and diary entries to the nearest Judicial Magistrate before the expiry of the seven days (section 187(6)).
What if the investigation does not show sufficient evidence?
If, after investigation, the officer in charge finds there is not sufficient evidence or reasonable ground of suspicion to justify forwarding the accused to a Magistrate, the officer shall, if the person is in custody, release him on his executing a bond or bail bond as directed. The bond is to ensure the person appears, if and when required, before a Magistrate empowered to take cognizance on a police report and to try or commit the accused for trial (section 189).
If the investigation shows sufficient evidence or reasonable ground, the officer in charge shall forward the accused in custody to a Magistrate empowered to take cognizance on a police report and to try or commit the accused for trial. If the offence is bailable and the accused is able to give security, the officer may instead take security for the accused’s appearance before the Magistrate (section 190(1)).
What about long investigations in summons‑cases?
If a case is triable by a Magistrate as a summons‑case and the investigation is not concluded within six months from the date of arrest, the Magistrate shall make an order stopping further investigation, unless the officer making the investigation satisfies the Magistrate that special reasons and the interests of justice make continuation necessary (section 187(9)). The Sessions Judge may vacate an order stopping investigation and direct further investigation, with directions about bail and other matters, if satisfied that further investigation ought to be made (section 187(10)).
Key points
- If the 24‑hour period is exceeded, the police must forward the accused and diary entries to the nearest Magistrate (section 187(1)).
- A Magistrate may authorise detention up to 15 days in the initial period described, and may extend detention subject to overall caps of 90 days (very serious offences) or 60 days (other offences); on expiry the accused shall be released on bail if bail is furnished (section 187(2)–(3) and Explanation I).
- If no Judicial Magistrate is available, an Executive Magistrate may authorise up to 7 days’ detention; those days count towards the longer limits (section 187(6)).
- If investigation shows insufficient evidence, the officer in charge must release the accused on a bond or bail bond to appear before the Magistrate (section 189).
Laws referred to
- Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 — section 187 (Procedure when investigation cannot be completed in twenty-four hours), section 189, section 190; reference to section 58 and Chapter XXXV as appearing in the provided official text
Official sources
This guide explains what the law itself says. Court rulings interpreting these provisions can also affect how they apply in a particular case. It states the position under the official texts listed above, as at 3 November 2026.
Source: Official text (egazette.gov.in) (opens in a new tab)