CrPC Section 167 vs BNSS Section 187

The single most controversial change in the BNSS's pre-trial provisions is BNSS Section 187's extension of police custody beyond CrPC's absolute 15-day limit. Under CrPC, the 15-day police custody cap was a hard, non-negotiable constitutional safeguard — it had been upheld in hundreds of cases as a fundamental protection against extended police interrogation and its associated risk of custodial abuse. BNSS Section 187 bends this rule for serious offences specified by State Governments, allowing police custody in instalments up to 40 days total. The arguments on both sides are genuine: on the liberty side, extended police custody creates enhanced risk of coercion, torture, and false confession; on the security side, complex terrorism and organised crime investigations may genuinely require longer physical access to the accused to trace networks, recover weapons, and prevent evidence destruction. The default bail provision's preservation is the critical counterbalance — the investigation must conclude within 60/90 days regardless of how long police custody was.