Judicial Custody, Police Custody, and Parole

1.1 What is judicial custody?

In judicial custody the accused is held in prison. The Magistrate authorises the detention. The police do not run it.

The BNSS allows only three places. These are a police station for police custody, a prison for judicial custody, and a place declared a prison.

1.2 What is police custody?

In police custody the accused is held at a police station. The point is to let the police question the accused.

The Supreme Court’s 2026 judgment shows the purpose. It gave the investigating officer unrestricted access to the accused for questioning during police custody.

1.3 Who decides which custody?

• The Magistrate decides. Section 187(2) lets the Magistrate authorise detention in the custody he thinks fit.
• Second-class Magistrates: they cannot authorise police custody unless the High Court has specially empowered them.
• A woman under eighteen: she is sent to a remand home or a recognised social institution.

Our own table, built from section 187 of the BNSS.

2.1 What happens after an arrest?

Sometimes the police cannot finish the questioning within 24 hours. Then they send the accused to the nearest Magistrate. They also send a copy of the case diary entries.

2.2 How long can detention last?

• Police custody: not more than fifteen days in the whole, or in parts.
• When: at any time during the initial forty days or sixty days of the detention period.
• Beyond fifteen days: the Magistrate needs adequate grounds.
• Total limit: ninety days for an offence punishable with death, life imprisonment or ten years or more. Sixty days for any other offence.
• At the end: the accused shall be released on bail if ready to furnish bail.

The fifteen days are a cap on police custody only. The rest of the time is judicial custody.

2.3 Must the accused be present in person?

For police custody, yes. The Magistrate cannot authorise it unless the accused is produced in person. This applies the first time and every time after.

For further judicial custody, the Magistrate may use audio-video means instead.

If no Magistrate is available, an Executive Magistrate may authorise detention for up to seven days in all.

3.1 When did the BNSS begin?

The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 came into force on 1 July 2024. All India Radio reported this on that day.

The Supreme Court calls section 167 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 the “erstwhile” provision. Section 187 BNSS took its place.

3.2 What did the Supreme Court say in July 2026?

The case is State of Andhra Pradesh v. Suda Suresh Veera Venkata Naga Raju. Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta decided it on 27 July 2026.

• The facts: an accused in a custodial death case was in judicial custody in a Central Prison.
• The request: on 25 June 2026 the prosecution filed a memo under section 187 before the Magistrate. It sought twelve days of police remand.
• The Magistrate: on 2 July 2026 he granted eight days of police custody, with conditions.
• The Court: it ordered seven days of police custody. The total, with what the lower courts granted, would not exceed fifteen days.

3.3 What changed from the old rule?

The Court said sections 187(2) and (3) widen the window for police custody. The earlier rule confined the window to the first fifteen days of remand. Now the fifteen days may come in parts, during the first forty or sixty days.

The Court said the change was meant for fresh facts, discoveries or leads found during the investigation.

So the idea that police custody can only come in the first fifteen days of remand does not describe the BNSS.

3.4 What safeguards did the Court keep?

• Recording: audio-visual recording of the actual interrogation sessions stays.
• Advocate: section 38 gives the right to meet an advocate during interrogation, though not throughout.
• No outer limit: the Court set aside an absolute, non-extendable outer limit on custody.

4.1 What is parole?

Parole is a temporary release for a short period. It helps a prisoner keep social ties with family and community.

The Model Prison Manual 2016 names two types:

• Emergency parole: for urgent matters like a death, a serious illness or a marriage in the family. It lasts up to 48 hours.
• Regular parole: for regular needs like house repair, school admission for children, a delivery, or sowing and harvesting.

The time spent on parole does not reduce the sentence. The prisoner serves extra time in prison.

4.2 What is furlough?

Furlough is a short release after a gap of some qualifying years in prison. It rewards good conduct.

The time spent on furlough counts towards the sentence. The Supreme Court in Asfaq says furlough is meant for breaking the monotony of imprisonment. It can be denied in the interest of society.

Sources: Model Prison Manual 2016, paragraphs 19.03, 19.04, 19.06.2, 19.11; Asfaq (2017). Our own table.

4.3 Can every prisoner claim parole?

• Not an absolute right: the Home Ministry’s 2020 advisory calls parole a concession.
• A right of the eligible: the Model Manual says it is a legal right of every eligible prisoner on the conditions laid down.
• Can be cancelled: the concession is subject to cancellation.
• Serious crime: Asfaq held that a conviction for a serious crime cannot, by itself, be the reason to deny parole.
• The main ground: Asfaq calls keeping family and social ties the most important ground.

5.1 Is there one national rule?

No. The Home Ministry says prisons and the persons detained in them are State subjects. States have made their own rules.

The Ministry prepared the Model Prison Manual and circulated it in May 2016. Each State or Union Territory may make its own law or instructions on parole and furlough.

So the numbers in the Manual are a model. A State’s rules may differ.

5.2 What does the Home Ministry ask of States?

In its advisory of 3 September 2020, the Ministry reminded States that parole is a concession and not an absolute right.

The Supreme Court noted in Asfaq that many State governments have guidelines on parole to bring objectivity into decisions.

6.1 Which mix-ups does this topic invite?

• Judicial custody: in prison, under the Magistrate. Police custody: at a police station.
• Police custody cap: fifteen days in all. It is not “the first fifteen days” under the BNSS.
• Total detention: 60 or 90 days, depending on the offence.
• Parole: a concession. Time does not count towards the sentence.
• Furlough: time counts. It is not tied to a particular reason.
• Rules: made by States. The Model Manual is only a model.