Proclamation for a Person Absconding Under the BNSS (Section 84): CrPC 82 Mapping (2026)

Explainer · New Criminal Laws · BNSS

Updated for 2026 · Claw Editorial

A court issues a warrant, but the person cannot be found. They have left, or they are hiding to defeat the warrant, and the case cannot move. The court needs a lawful way to call the person publicly, and to warn of the consequences of staying away. That tool is the proclamation for an absconding person. From 1 July 2024 it is Section 84 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), which replaced Section 82 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC). This explainer explains the proclamation, how it maps to the old law, how it must be published, and when a person becomes a proclaimed offender. Last verified October 2026.

01The problem this step solves

A warrant is useless if the person cannot be served and will not come. The law needs a step between a warrant that cannot be executed and the stronger measures that follow, such as attaching property or trying the person in absence.

The proclamation is that step. It does three things:

• It publicly calls the person to appear by a fixed date.
• It puts on record that the person is avoiding the court.
• It opens the door to attachment of property and, in serious cases, to a declaration as a proclaimed offender.

Because it carries real consequences, the proclamation must follow a strict procedure.

02What Section 84 BNSS is

Section 84 of the BNSS is the proclamation for a person absconding. If a court has reason to believe that a person against whom it has issued a warrant has absconded, or is concealing themselves so the warrant cannot be executed, the court may publish a written proclamation requiring that person to appear at a stated place and at a stated time. That time must be not less than thirty days from the date of publishing the proclamation.

This is a procedure provision. Section 84 itself does not create an offence and carries no punishment of its own. The consequence of not appearing is dealt with by other provisions: attachment of property under the next section, a possible declaration as a proclaimed offender, and the separate offence of failing to appear.

03Old to new: CrPC 82 becomes BNSS 84

The proclamation corresponds to the old CrPC 82, and the steps that follow it have moved with it.

For the next step, see attachment of property under Section 85 BNSS. For the offence of not appearing, see non-appearance under Section 209 BNS. The new code also expands trial in absence for a proclaimed offender under Section 356 BNSS.

04How the proclamation must be published

The way the proclamation is published is part of its validity. Under the section it must be published in the following ways:

• It is to be read publicly in a conspicuous place of the town or village where the person ordinarily lives.
• A copy is to be affixed to a conspicuous part of the house or place where the person ordinarily lives, and to a conspicuous part of the court-house.
• The court may also direct a copy to be published in a daily newspaper circulating in the place where the person ordinarily lives.

A written statement by the court that the proclamation was duly published on a stated day is treated as evidence that the requirements were met.

05When a person becomes a proclaimed offender

A proclamation and a declaration as a proclaimed offender are not the same thing. The proclamation is the public call to appear. The declaration as a proclaimed offender is a further, stronger step, and it is tied to serious offences.

Where the proclamation relates to an offence punishable with imprisonment for ten years or more, imprisonment for life, or death, the court may, after such inquiry as it thinks fit, pronounce the person a proclaimed offender and make a declaration to that effect, if the person fails to appear at the stated place and time. This status has consequences, including the route to trial in absence.

06What the courts require

Courts have repeatedly set aside proclamations that cut corners. Two requirements come up again and again.

• Recorded satisfaction. The court must record its satisfaction that the person is absconding or concealing themselves to evade the warrant. A mechanical order is not enough.
• Fixed time and place. The order must specify the time and place for appearance, and the time must be at least thirty days away.

The Jharkhand High Court has stressed both points in matters under Section 84 BNSS and the old Section 82 CrPC. A proclamation that lacks recorded satisfaction or a fixed appearance date is vulnerable to challenge.

07Where Claw fits

Claw is an all-in-one legaltech platform for Indian advocates, law firms, and corporate legal teams, combining AI-based case search, an AI legal assistant (Legal GPT), case management, and compliance automation across all Indian courts and tribunals.

A proclamation and the steps that follow it are often challenged on procedure, so the first job is to find how courts have tested them. Claw lets you search 30 crore+ judgments to see how benches have read Section 84 of the BNSS and the old Section 82 of the CrPC, with results in under 5 seconds and coverage stretching from the Supreme Court in 1950 to the High Courts in 1990. It also follows cases, orders and hearings tied to a proclamation, by party or advocate name, across 9,102 courts, benches and forums. Claw does not use customer case documents to train AI models.

Create a free Claw account to search and track these matters by party or advocate name. To follow a case across courts, see how to track criminal case hearings and the case search hub.

08Sources and further reading

• India Code (official text of the BNSS, 2023): indiacode.nic.in
• Ministry of Home Affairs (new criminal laws): mha.gov.in
• Claw: clawlaw.in

This explainer is general information, not legal advice. Read the current text of Section 84 and the connected sections, and take advice from counsel before relying on it.

09Frequently asked questions