Harbouring offender
AI Assist
Summary
Harbouring or hiding a person you know or reasonably suspect to have committed an offence, with the intention of shielding them from legal punishment, is itself a crime. Punishment depends on the seriousness of the offence: if the offence attracts death, up to five years imprisonment and fine; if it attracts life or up to ten years, up to three years and fine; for lesser offences, up to one‑fourth of the maximum term or fine or both. Husband or wife who shelter their spouse are exempt; certain listed offences committed abroad are treated as if committed in India for this rule.
Example
Ravi knows Arjun committed dacoity and hides him in his flat to stop the police arresting him. Because dacoity is punishable with imprisonment for life, Ravi can be punished with up to three years imprisonment and a fine.
Bare Act
Enacted textWhenever an offence has been committed, whoever harbours or conceals a person whom he knows or has reason to believe to be the offender, with the intention of screening him from legal punishment,
if a capital offence – shall, if the offence is punishable with death, be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to five years, and shall also be liable to fine;
if punishable with imprisonment for life, or with imprisonment – and if the offence is punishable with imprisonment for life, or with imprisonment which may extend to ten years, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to three years, and shall also be liable to fine; and if the offence is punishable with imprisonment which may extend to one year, and not to ten years, shall be punished with imprisonment of the description provided for the offence for a term which may extend to one-fourth part of the longest term of imprisonment provided for the offence, or with fine, or with both.
“Offence” in this section includes any act committed at any place out of India, which, if committed in India, would be punishable under any of the following sections, namely, 302, 304, 382, 392, 393, 394, 395, 396, 397, 398, 399, 402, 435, 436, 449, 450, 457, 458, 459 and 460; and every such act shall, for the purposes of this section, be deemed to be punishable as if the accused person had been guilty of it in India.
Exceptions
(1) This provision shall not extend to any case in which the harbour or concealment is by the husband or wife of the offender.
Illustrations
(1) A, knowing that B has committed dacoity, knowingly conceals B in order to screen him from legal punishment. Here, as B is liable to imprisonment for life, A is liable to imprisonment of either description for a term not exceeding three years, and is also liable to fine.
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