Whenever an offence has been committed, whoever harbours or conceals a person whom he knows or has reason to believe to be the offender, with the intention of screening him from legal punishment;

if a capital offence.--shall, if the offence is punishable with death, be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to five years, and shall also be liable to fine;

if punishable with imprisonment for life, or with imprisonment.--and if the offence is punishable with¹[imprisonment for life], or with imprisonment which may extend to ten years, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to three years, and shall also be liable to fine;

and if the offence is punishable with imprisonment which may extend to one year, and not to ten years, shall be punished with imprisonment of the description provided for the offence for a term which may extend to one-fourth part of the longest term of imprisonment provided for the offence, or with fine, or with both.

²["Offence" in this section includes any act committed at any place out of³[India], which, if committed in³[India], would be punishable under any of the following sections, namely, 302, 304, 382, 392, 393, 394, 395, 396, 397, 398, 399, 402, 435, 436, 449, 450, 457, 458, 459 and 460; and every such act shall, for the purposes of this section, be deemed to be punishable as if the accused person had been guilty of it in³[India].]

Exception.--This provision shall not extend to any case in which the harbour or concealment is by the husband or wife of the offender.

Illustration

A, knowing that B has committed dacoity, knowingly conceals B in order to screen him from legal punishment. Here, as B is liable to¹[imprisonment for life], A is liable to imprisonment of either description for a term not exceeding three years, and is also liable to fine.

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1 . Substituted by Act 26 of 1955, section 117 and Schedule, for "transportation for life" (w.e.f. 1-1-1956).

2 . Inserted by Act 3 of 1894, section 7.

3 . The words "British India" have successively been Substituted by the A.O. 1948, the A.O. 1950 and Act 3 of 1951, section 3 and Schedule to read as above.