The Orissa High Court has set aside a non-bailable warrant (NBW) issued against Trinath Guru, observing that the trial court did not record any compelling reason for taking such a stringent step against an accused who was already on bail.
Justice G. Satapathy passed the order on June 9 while hearing a petition filed under Section 528 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023.
At the beginning of the hearing, counsel for the petitioners informed the court that the petition would not be pressed on behalf of petitioner No. 1, Tosharam Naik alias Anish. The High Court accordingly confined its consideration to petitioner No. 2, Trinath Guru.
Background of the Case
The challenge before the High Court arose from an order dated May 6, 2026, passed by the Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC), Lakhanpur.
According to the trial court's order, several accused persons, including Trinath Guru, remained absent despite service of summons. Since nobody appeared after repeated calls, the magistrate issued a non-bailable warrant and fixed a date for production of the accused persons.
Trinath Guru approached the High Court seeking quashing of that order.
Court Observation
During the hearing, the High Court examined the scope of the BNSS provisions relating to the appearance of accused persons and issuance of warrants.
Justice Satapathy noted that Section 355 of the BNSS gives courts the discretion to dispense with the personal attendance of an accused even during inquiry or trial proceedings. The court emphasized that issuance of a non-bailable warrant is not an automatic consequence of absence on a particular date.
The bench observed that the petitioner had already been granted bail on December 23, 2025, and had furnished the required bail bonds.
“The impugned order does not disclose what was the necessity to issue NBWA against the petitioner,” the court observed.
The judge further pointed out that, in such situations, a court may first issue notice to the sureties or adopt less restrictive measures before resorting to a non-bailable warrant.
Highlighting the importance of personal liberty, the court remarked,
“Liberty of a person cannot be taken away without proper procedure or it should not be dealt with lightly because custody brings lot of harassment and inconvenience.”
The High Court also noted that the magistrate's order did not indicate whether notices had been issued to the bailers before the warrant was issued.
Decision
After considering the circumstances, the High Court held that the order issuing the non-bailable warrant could not withstand legal scrutiny.
The court quashed the May 6, 2026 order insofar as it related to Trinath Guru. It also permitted him to continue on the bail already granted earlier, while directing him to regularize the proceedings by appearing before the trial court on the next date fixed in the case.
Case Details:
Case Title: Trinath Guru & Another v. State of Orissa
Case Number: CRLMC No. 1806 of 2026
Judge: Justice G. Satapathy
Decision Date: 09 June 2026
