Exemption from personal appearance may be granted with regulated attendance, allowing plea through counsel and temporary protection from coercive process.

Exemption from personal appearance may be granted where the circumstances justify regulated attendance without impeding the trial, and appearance through pleader may then be permitted in accordance with law. In this matter under Section 482 CrPC, the Court directed the applicants to appear before the trial court within two weeks, have their bail application considered on the same day, and thereafter seek appearance through pleader. Non-bailable warrants were kept in abeyance for two weeks to allow compliance, while the merits of the complaint and the tax dispute were left untouched.

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Issues: Whether, in the circumstances of the case, the applicants were entitled to be directed to appear before the trial court within a fixed time, seek bail on the same day, and be considered for appearance through pleader, with the non-bailable warrants kept in abeyance for a limited period.

Analysis: The application was under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973. The Court, without entering into the merits of the complaint or the tax dispute, considered the need for regulated appearance before the trial court. In the light of the settled principle that exemption from personal attendance may be granted where the facts justify it, the Court issued protective directions enabling the applicants to appear within two weeks, have the bail application considered on the same day, and thereafter seek appearance through pleader in accordance with law. The non-bailable warrants were kept in abeyance for two weeks to facilitate compliance.

Conclusion: The applicants were granted limited procedural relief, and the matter was disposed of with directions in their favour to the extent of regulated appearance and temporary protection from coercive process.

Final Conclusion: The proceeding was concluded by granting conditional procedural accommodation to the applicants, while leaving the trial court to proceed further according to law.

Ratio Decidendi: Exemption from personal appearance and permission to appear through pleader may be granted where the circumstances justify regulated attendance without affecting the progress of the trial.

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