Information Technology Act Section 77A — Compounding of offences
CHAPTER XI OFFENCES
Cyber Law
Summary
A court of competent jurisdiction may compound offences under this Act, except for offences that carry a punishment of life imprisonment or imprisonment for a term exceeding three years. Compounding means the court can allow the matter to be settled or closed without a full trial, typically upon agreement between the parties.
However, the court shall not compound such an offence if the accused person, because of a previous conviction, is liable to either an enhanced punishment or a punishment of a different kind. This means that if the accused has a prior conviction that would increase the severity of the sentence, compounding is not permitted.
Additionally, the court shall not compound any offence if the offence affects the socio-economic conditions of the country, or if the offence has been committed against a child below the age of 18 years, or against a woman. In these situations, the offence cannot be settled through compounding.
Sub-section (2) states that the person accused of an offence under this Act may file an application for compounding in the court where the offence is pending for trial. The provisions of sections 265B and 265C of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, shall apply to such an application, meaning the process for filing and handling the application will follow those specified procedures.
Official Text
A court of competent jurisdiction may compound offences, other than offences for which the punishment for life or imprisonment for a term exceeding three years has been provided, under this Act:
Provided that the court shall not compound such offence where the accused is, by reason of his previous conviction, liable to either enhanced punishment or to a punishment of a different kind:
Provided further that the court shall not compound any offence where such offence affects the socio economic conditions of the country or has been committed against a child below the age of 18 years or a woman.
(2) The person accused of an offence under this Act may file an application for compounding in the court in which offence is pending for trial and the provisions of sections 265B and 265C of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974) shall apply.