(1) No person shall knowingly
harbor an offender with intent to prevent him or her from being
apprehended or save him or her from a lawful sentence.
Explanation: For the purposes of this Section, the term
“offender” means a person who is suspected or accused of an offence
or convicted by a court of such offence.
(2) A person who commits, or causes to be committed, the
offence referred to in sub-section (1) shall be liable to the sentence as
follows:
(a) Sentence of imprisonment for a term not exceeding five
years and a fine not exceeding fifty thousand rupees
where that person has harbored the offender of an
offence punishable by imprisonment for life or
imprisonment for a term not exceeding twenty years,
(b) Sentence of imprisonment for a term not exceeding
three years and a fine not exceeding thirty thousand
rupees where that person has harbored the offender of
an offence punishable by imprisonment for a term not
exceeding ten years,
(c) Sentence of imprisonment or fine not exceeding one
fourth of the maximum term of imprisonment or amount
of fine or both the sentences imposable for the offence
where that person has harbored the offender of the
offence other than that mentioned in clause (a) or (b).
(3) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1),
no offence referred to in this Section shall be considered to have
61
been committed where the offender's husband or wife or father,
mother, son, daughter, elder brother, younger brother, elder sister,
younger sister, grand-father, grand-mother, grand-son, granddaughter,
mother-in-law, father-in-law, daughter-in-law or son-inlaw
has harbored the offender.