No grant of default bail for chargesheet lacking sanction of authority

The Supreme Court (‘SC’), while deciding appeals filed by accused charged with offences under the Indian Penal Code, 1860 and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, held that an accused is not entitled to default bail under Section 167(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (‘CrPC’), on the ground that the chargesheet, even though filed within the time limit as prescribed under Section 167(2) of CrPC, did not have a valid order of sanction by a competent authority. Dismissing the appeals, the SC reiterated that the grant of sanction is not contemplated under Section 167 of the CrPC.