Section 64 IPC: Imprisonment for Non-Payment of Fine
Section 64 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 empowered a sentencing court to direct that an offender suffer imprisonment for a specified term if a fine imposed by the court was not paid.
Text of Section 64 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860
In every case of an offence punishable with imprisonment as well as fine, in which the offender is sentenced to a fine, whether with or without imprisonment, and in every case of an offence punishable with imprisonment or fine, or with fine only, in which the offender is sentenced to a fine, it shall be competent to the Court which sentences such offender to direct by the sentence that, in default of payment of the fine, the offender shall suffer imprisonment for a certain term, which imprisonment shall be in excess of any other imprisonment to which he may have been sentenced or to which he may be liable under a commutation of a sentence.
Meaning of Section 64 IPC
Section 64 dealt with a default sentence. When a court imposed a fine in a case covered by the provision, it was competent to direct that the offender undergo imprisonment for a specified period if the fine was not paid. The words "it shall be competent to the Court" conferred a power on the sentencing court; the provision did not state that default imprisonment had to be imposed in every case.
When could imprisonment in default of fine be ordered?
| Type of offence | Section 64 position |
|---|---|
| Imprisonment as well as fine | If a fine was imposed, whether or not substantive imprisonment was also imposed, the court could provide a default term. |
| Imprisonment or fine | If the court chose to impose a fine, Section 64 permitted a default term. |
| Fine only | Where the offender was sentenced to a fine, the court could direct imprisonment in default, subject to the applicable statutory limits. |
Default imprisonment is additional to other imprisonment
Section 64 expressly provided that the imprisonment ordered in default of payment of fine was to be in excess of any other imprisonment to which the offender had been sentenced or might be liable under commutation of a sentence. It therefore operated separately from the substantive term of imprisonment imposed for the offence.
Section 64 must be read with Sections 65 to 70 IPC
Section 64 supplied the general power to order imprisonment in default of payment. That power was controlled by the following provisions governing matters such as the maximum default term, the description of imprisonment, termination of default imprisonment on payment, proportional termination on part-payment, and recovery of the fine. Readers should therefore consider Sections 65, 66, 67, 68, 69 and 70 IPC together with Section 64.
Limits on the term of default imprisonment
Section 64 itself did not state every quantitative limit on the default term. For offences punishable with imprisonment as well as fine, Section 65 restricted imprisonment in default to one-fourth of the maximum term of imprisonment fixed for the offence. Section 67 separately dealt with offences punishable with fine only. The sentencing power under Section 64 was therefore subject to these connected statutory limitations.
Can default imprisonment be avoided by paying the fine?
Default imprisonment exists because the fine has not been paid. Under the connected IPC provisions, payment or levy of the fine could terminate the imprisonment, and proportional payment could result in proportional termination. Section 68 provided for termination when the fine was paid or levied, while Section 69 addressed proportional termination following payment of part of the fine.
Fine and compensation under the CrPC
Under the pre-BNSS criminal procedure framework, the Supreme Court recognized that Sections 357(3) and 431 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, read with Section 64 IPC, enabled a court ordering compensation to provide a default sentence for non-payment. This principle appears in decisions including Vijayan v. Sadanandan K. and was reiterated in later Supreme Court authority.
Related IPC provisions
For the wider punishment framework, see Section 53 IPC - Punishments, Section 54 IPC - Commutation of death sentence, Section 55 IPC - Commutation of life imprisonment, Sections 65 to 70 IPC - Fine and default imprisonment, Section 71 IPC - Limit of punishment, and Sections 73 and 74 IPC - Solitary confinement.
Key point
Section 64 IPC empowered the sentencing court to attach a specified term of imprisonment to the non-payment of a fine. That default term was additional to substantive imprisonment and remained subject to the limitations and payment provisions contained in Sections 65 to 70 IPC.