In Brief
Bikramjit Singh was arrested in connection with a grenade attack at a gurudwara in Punjab that killed three people. He sought default bail under Section 167(2) of the Criminal Procedure Code after 90 days of custody, as no chargesheet was filed. The Magistrate extended the investigation period without jurisdiction; the Special Court corrected this. The High Court nevertheless denied default bail, holding the chargesheet's filing extinguished the right. The Supreme Court held that the Special Court, not the Magistrate, has exclusive jurisdiction to extend investigation periods for UAPA offences. Once an application for default bail is filed before the chargesheet, the accused's indefeasible right to default bail cannot be defeated by subsequent chargesheet filing. The Court allowed the appeal and granted default bail, treating it as a fundamental right under Article 21.
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