default sentence Archives

imprisonment in default of fine Section 138 NI

Imprisonment in Default of Fine is Coercive, Not Punitive: Karnataka High Court Orders Release of Convict in Section 138 NI Act Case

In the present case, the petitioner was convicted in three separate cheque dishonour cases under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act arising from a single loan transaction and was sentenced to pay substantial fines, with three months’ simple imprisonment in default in each case.

Case Briefs High Courts

Bombay HC orders release of a man incarcerated beyond sentence period in default of payment of fines due to poverty

The Court referred to Jolly George Varghese v. Bank of Cochin, (1980) 2 SCC 360 quoting Justice V.R. Krishna Iyer that “to be poor, in this land of Daridranayan, is no crime, and to recover debts by the procedure of putting one in prison is too flagrantly violative of Article 21 unless there is proof of the minimal fairness of his wilful failure to pay in spite of his sufficient means”.