Custody relates to the possession or control of the certificates as physical objects. Custody means judicial or penal safe keeping.As per Sec. 167 of Cr.P.C if the investigation into an offence is not completed within 24 hours and the accused is in custody, the concerned police officers shall forward the accused to the nearest Judicial Magistrate. If the accusations made are well-founded, the accused shall not be released on bail unless his/her detention is authorized by a magistrate from time to time. In the case of a woman under 18 years of age, the detention shall be in a remand home or a recognized social institution.

TYPES OF CUSTODY

Police custody

Police custody means that the physical custody of the accused is with the Police, the accused is lodged in a lock-up of a police station. After an FIR is lodged for a cognizable offense (provides punishment for more than three years), the accused is arrested by the police to prevent the tampering of evidence or influencing the witnesses. 

Under Sec. 57 of Cr. P.C , the police officer cannot keep the accused for more than 24 hours, irrespective of whether the investigation is complete or not. The accused is produced before the concerned Magistrate within 24 hours of the arrest, the police seek his remand to police custody in order to complete the investigation expeditiously, the police decides for how long the accused must be kept in custody, which cannot exceed a period of 15 days.

Judicial Custody

Judicial custody is there in case of serious offenses, where the Court may accede on the request of the police to remand the accused in judicial custody after the police custody period expires, that is to prevent the tampering of evidence or witnesses.

It is mandatory in criminal cases to file a chargesheet within 90 days. If there is failure in the filing of a charge-sheet within 90 days, the bail is normally granted to the accused. But, in case if heinous offenses, like rape or murder, the accused is generally kept in a judicial custody (that is kept in jail under the custody of the court) for a longer duration despite the filing of a chargesheet, in order to not influence the process of trial.

The judicial custody may be for a period of 60 days for all other crimes, if the Court finds it convincing that sufficient reason exists, following which the suspect or accused may be released on bail.