What is the difference between judicial custody and police custody under Cr.P.C.

You must have probably seen the terms "judicial custody" and "police custody" in the headlines a lot, and you might be wondering what they precisely mean. Or how do these two custodies differ from one another?

Do you know what the term "custody" means before we go to comprehend what the terms "police custody" and "judicial custody" mean?

Before understanding the concept of judicial and police custody, it is imperative to understand what custody means.

To keep someone in legal detention for committing a crime is to be in custody. Usually, the goal is to look into the matter further and prevent the offender from causing additional havoc.

Many people link being in custody to being arrested. However, these two terms are not interchangeable. Not everyone who is taken into custody must be arrested. Police frequently hold suspects in custody merely to discipline them or develop a sense of fear in them, preventing them from committing the crime again.

Police custody:

Police detention means the suspect to prevent them from hurting further individuals in the event that a complaint or FIR is filed against them. Police custody is the term for this arrest. According to the legislation, the police are only allowed to hold somebody in custody for a maximum of 24 hours.

Judicial custody:

After the accused has been taken into custody, the police must get authorization from the relevant magistrate to question the suspect further. Within 24 hours of the arrest, the police must present the suspect to the magistrate in order to extend police detention. Judicial custody is the term for the extension of police custody.

Difference between the police and judicial custody:

• In judicial custody, the accused is detained in jail under the supervision of a magistrate, as opposed to police custody, where the accused is in the care of the police or investigating authority.

• The person is in police custody as soon as the police arrest them whereas for judicial custody the police need to get court permission.

• The person is in detention in police custody for no more than 24 hours whereas in judicial custody the person can remain in detention until the court does not issue bail.

• The police provide security for the accused when they are in police custody, whereas the magistrate is in charge of the accused when they are in judicial custody.