Question

Under the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), 1973, which specific provision provides the legal definition for a 'Bailable Offence'?

• A. Section 2(h)
• B. Section 2(x)
• C. Section 2(c)
• D. Section 2(a)

Hint:

Remember the sequence: Section 2(a) defines Bailable Offence, while Section 2(c) defines Cognizable Offence. These are among the most frequently tested CrPC definitions.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is D

Since this is a pure definitional recall question, the fastest approach is to recall what each cited clause of Section 2 actually defines and see which one matches Bailable Offence.

1. Section 2(a): defines a bailable offence as one shown as bailable in the First Schedule, or made bailable by any other law in force, which is exactly the term the question asks about.
2. Section 2(c): defines a cognizable offence, the classification that governs arrest without warrant, a related but distinct concept from bailability.
3. Section 2(h): defines a different term in the Code's glossary, unrelated to bail classification.
4. Section 2(x): similarly defines a separate expression used elsewhere in the Code, again with no connection to the bailable offence definition.

Matching the question's term against the Code's own glossary shows that Section 2(a) alone supplies the definition being asked for.

Answer 2

The clause most often confused with the definition of a bailable offence is Section 2(c), because cognizable and bailable classifications sit side by side in the First Schedule and students frequently mix up which clause defines which term. Setting the two side by side resolves the confusion.

1. Section 2(c): this clause defines a cognizable offence, meaning one for which police may arrest without a warrant, a classification concerned with arrest power rather than the right to bail.
2. Section 2(a): this clause instead defines a bailable offence, meaning one for which bail can be claimed as of right, either because the First Schedule marks it bailable or because some other law makes it so. The subject matter here is release on bail, not arrest power, which is what distinguishes it from clause (c).
3. Section 2(h): defines yet another term from the Code's glossary that has no bearing on either arrest power or bail entitlement.
4. Section 2(x): similarly defines an unrelated expression, leaving it out of contention.

Once the cognizable-offence definition in Section 2(c) is separated from the bailable-offence definition in Section 2(a), and the two unrelated clauses are set aside, Section 2(a) is confirmed as the provision defining a bailable offence.

Therefore, the correct answer is Section 2(a).