Section 167(2) CrPC bail applies to Customs arrests absent any express or implied exclusion in the special statute.

Section 167(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure applies in full to a person arrested under Section 104 of the Customs Act, because the Code governs offences under special statutes unless there is an express or implied exclusion. The right to remand and the corresponding right to release on bail after expiry of the prescribed detention period were treated as co-extensive, so the bail proviso under Section 167(2) remains available in Customs cases. In the absence of any exclusionary provision in the Customs Act, a person arrested under that Act is entitled to be released on bail on expiry of the statutory period if bail is furnished.

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Issues: Whether a person arrested under Section 104 of the Customs Act is entitled to release on bail under the proviso to Section 167(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure after expiry of the prescribed period of detention.

Analysis: The operative question was whether the scheme of Section 167(2) of the Code applies in its entirety to a person arrested under the Customs Act. The Court held that the power of remand under Section 167 and the right to be released on bail after expiry of the prescribed period are co-extensive and that Section 4(2) of the Code makes the Code applicable to offences under special laws unless the special law contains an express or implied exclusion. No provision in the Customs Act was found to exclude the proviso to Section 167(2), and the earlier view taking the contrary position was treated as no longer good law in light of the Supreme Court ruling relied upon.

Conclusion: Section 167(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure applies in its entirety to a person arrested under Section 104 of the Customs Act, and such person is entitled to be released on bail on expiry of the prescribed period if bail is furnished.

Ratio Decidendi: In the absence of an express or implied exclusion in a special statute, the full operation of Section 167(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, including its bail proviso, applies to persons arrested under that special statute.

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