Compromise in Criminal Cases in Bangladesh 2026: Compounding, Withdrawal, Transfer and Legal Aid

Compromise in criminal cases Bangladesh: how a case can end before verdict

Compromise in criminal cases Bangladesh law permits is narrower than most complainants and accused assume, and wider than the Penal Code alone suggests. Section 345 of the Code of Criminal Procedure 1898 lists the offences that may be compounded, with or without the court's permission, and says that no other offence may be compounded. Around that rule sit several other exits: a complainant's withdrawal, the public prosecutor's withdrawal from prosecution, the High Court Division's inherent and revisional powers, special-law provisions on dowry and family violence, and since April 2026 a court power to refer the parties to a legal aid officer to settle.

This guide brings those routes together. It sets out the compounding table, what happens when parties settle a non-compoundable case, how the 2026 amendments to the women and children repression law changed dowry-hurt cases, the difference between section 248 and section 494 withdrawals, the government's harassment-case withdrawal committees, transfer of criminal cases under sections 526, 526B and 528, and the legal aid that an accused or victim can claim. Where a stage of the process is covered in another TRW guide, we link to it rather than repeat it.

Summary: An offence listed in section 345(1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure can be compounded by the victim without the court's permission; an offence in section 345(2) needs the permission of the court where the case is pending. Compounding operates as an acquittal. Other offences cannot lawfully be compounded, although the High Court Division increasingly gives effect to settlements in private, money-based cases such as cheque dishonour. A complainant may withdraw a summons-case complaint under section 248, and only the public prosecutor, with the court's consent, can withdraw a police case under section 494.

Key point: Since the Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Act 2026 inserted section 345(8), a criminal court may itself facilitate the compounding of a compoundable case, refer the parties to the legal aid officer or their advocates, keep a lawful settlement agreement on the record and pass orders to implement it. A settlement now has a statutory route to enforcement inside the criminal case.

At a glance

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Table of Contents

Why compromise in criminal cases Bangladesh law allows is tightly controlled

A crime is treated as an offence against the state, not only against the person harmed. That is why a private settlement does not, by itself, end a prosecution. The legislature has instead chosen a list of offences in which the victim's interest predominates and allowed those offences, and only those, to be compounded. Section 345(7) of the Code states the rule bluntly: no offence shall be compounded except as provided by that section.[1]

Three ideas are often confused. Compounding is a statutory settlement that ends the case and acquits the accused. Withdrawal is a procedural step by the complainant or the prosecutor that ends the case without a finding on the merits. Quashing is a court order, usually of the High Court Division, that the proceedings are an abuse of process or disclose no offence. A settlement can feed into any of the three, but the legal route decides whether the accused walks away with an acquittal, a discharge or a stay. For the stages of a prosecution from FIR to appeal, see our guide to the criminal case process in Bangladesh.

Who counts as the person entitled to compound

The right to compound belongs to the person named in the third column of the section 345 tables: the person hurt, the owner of the stolen property, the person defamed, the person cheated, and so on. The informant who lodged the FIR is not automatically that person. Where the person entitled is under eighteen or of unsound mind, someone competent to contract on that person's behalf may compound, but only with the court's permission under section 345(4). Abetment of a compoundable offence, and an attempt where the attempt is itself an offence, may be compounded in the same way.[1]

Compoundable offences under section 345 of the Code of Criminal Procedure

Section 345 contains two tables. Offences in the first may be compounded by the person entitled without asking the court; the court records the composition and acquits. Offences in the second may be compounded only with the permission of the court before which the prosecution is pending.[1] The table below groups the principal entries. On a phone, scroll it sideways.

The 2026 amendment added being a member of an unlawful assembly under section 143 of the Penal Code to the second table, compoundable by the person against whom the assembly gathered.[2] Offences that appear in neither table, including grievous hurt by dangerous weapons under section 326, murder and rape, are not compoundable under the Code.[1] [6]

Permission at later stages

Permission becomes compulsory even for first-table offences once the case moves up. Under section 345(5), once the accused has been sent for trial, or has been convicted and an appeal is pending, no composition is allowed without the leave of the court of trial or the appellate court. Section 345(5A) lets the High Court Division in revision under section 439, and a Court of Session in revision under section 439A, allow a person to compound any offence that person is competent to compound.[1] Compounding is therefore available from the first hearing to the last revision, but the later it comes, the more the court will scrutinise it.

Effect of compounding

Section 345(6) gives a lawful composition the effect of an acquittal of the accused with whom the offence is compounded.[1] Two practical points follow. First, where there are several accused, the settlement should name each of them, because composition benefits only those with whom it is made. Second, where an FIR combines compoundable and non-compoundable sections, compounding the minor sections does not end the case on the serious ones.

Court-facilitated settlement under section 345(8)

The Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Act 2026, Act No. XI of 2026, dated 10 April 2026, inserted section 345(8).[2] Where both parties agree to compound a compoundable case, the court may now facilitate the process itself, or refer the matter to the legal aid officer appointed under the Legal Aid Services Act 2000, to the parties' advocates or, where no advocate is engaged, to the parties themselves. If the court is satisfied that a lawful agreement has been executed, it may preserve the agreement in the record and pass orders to implement its terms, provided third parties' rights are not prejudiced. "Party" means the person entitled to compound and the accused.[1]

The provision changes the economics of compromise in criminal cases Bangladesh courts handle every day. Before 2026 a settlement was usually reduced to an affidavit, and if the accused later defaulted on an instalment, the victim had already compounded and lost the case. Section 345(8) allows the court to keep the agreement on the record and make implementing orders. The Legal Aid Services Act matches it: a Chief Legal Aid Officer or Legal Aid Officer may settle any compoundable matter that a court or tribunal sends for post-case mediation.[5]

Mediation in the Supreme Court

In August 2026 the Chief Justice authorised the Supreme Court Legal Aid Office to mediate pending cases under seven laws, including sections 3 and 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act 2018, section 11(c) of the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act 2000, listed Penal Code sections such as 323, 324, 325, 354, 379, 406 and 420, and section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act 1881. Serious non-compoundable offences such as murder, rape and offences under section 326 are excluded, the service is free, and the office reports the result to the court, which disposes of the case.[6]

Compromise in non-compoundable cases and quashing under section 561A

Parties often settle cases the Code does not allow them to compound, particularly cheque dishonour, money disputes dressed as cheating or breach of trust, and family quarrels charged under special laws. The settlement is lawful as a contract, but it cannot be "compounded" in the section 345 sense. What it can do depends on the court and the offence.

The cheque dishonour line of authority

The clearest example is section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act. Quoting the Appellate Division in Subash Chandra Sarker v State, [2018] 26 BLT (AD) 28, the High Court Division has repeated that a section 138 offence is not compoundable, but that an amicable settlement and payment of the cheque amount may be considered in granting relief on sentence.[7]

In 2026 one bench went further. In Md Khorshed Uddin v State (11 May 2026) it described the High Court Division as able, in appropriate cases, to invoke its inherent jurisdiction to give effect to a lawful settlement, and set aside the conviction.[8] In Md Rakib Hossain Pias v State (10 June 2026) the same bench held that a court may give effect to a lawful settlement in a section 138 case and acquitted the petitioner after the parties confirmed in court that they had settled voluntarily.[7]

Not every bench agrees

Other benches have taken the stricter view. In Md Rezaul Karim v State (25 November 2024) the High Court Division held that, because the offence is not compoundable, there was no scope to dispose of the Rule on the parties' compromise; it upheld the conviction and reduced the sentence to a fine equal to the cheque amount, crediting what had already been paid.[9] The practical lesson for compromise in criminal cases Bangladesh lawyers negotiate is to plan for both outcomes: settle on terms that work whether the court acquits or merely converts imprisonment into a fine. Our guide to cheque dishonour in Bangladesh covers the offence itself.

Where section 561A fits

Section 561A preserves the High Court Division's inherent power to make orders necessary to prevent abuse of the process of any court or otherwise to secure the ends of justice.[1] A settlement is not itself a ground for quashing, but it can support an argument that continuing a private, essentially civil prosecution would serve no purpose. The power is not used to wipe out serious offences against the person, and it is not a substitute for an appeal where one lies. The grounds, timing and procedure for quashing are set out in our analysis of section 561A quashment in Bangladesh.

Compromise in dowry and women and children repression cases after Act 85 of 2026

Family violence is where the law on compromise in criminal cases Bangladesh applies is most sensitive. Two statutes matter: the Dowry Prohibition Act 2018 and the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act 2000, which was amended by an ordinance in 2025 and then by the Women and Children Repression Prevention (Amendment) Act 2026, Act No. 85 of 2026.[3]

Dowry Prohibition Act offences are compoundable

Demanding dowry (section 3) and giving, taking or agreeing to dowry (section 4) are each punishable with imprisonment of one to five years, a fine of up to Tk 50,000, or both. Section 7 declares every offence under the Act cognizable, non-bailable and compoundable, and section 8 applies the Code of Criminal Procedure to investigation, trial and appeal.[4] Because the Act itself declares the offences compoundable, the parties do not need to fit them into the section 345 table. Section 6 separately punishes a person who files a dowry case knowing there is no just or lawful ground for it.[4]

Dowry-related simple hurt under section 11(c)

Section 11 of the women and children repression law punishes a husband or his relatives who cause death, attempt to cause death, grievous hurt or simple hurt to a woman for dowry. Only clause (c), simple hurt, is compoundable. Act No. 85 of 2026 raised the penalty for clause (c) to rigorous imprisonment of two to five years with a fine, in place of one to three years.[3]

The 2026 Act also moved the special regime into a new section 35, treated as effective from 25 March 2025. Section 11(c) offences are cognizable, compoundable and non-bailable, are taken cognizance of and tried by a Magistrate of the first class, and follow the Code of Criminal Procedure and the Evidence Act 1872 rather than the special tribunal procedure. Cases already pending before a tribunal are not transferred to magistrates. Where a section 11(c) charge is so connected with a tribunal offence that both must be tried together, the tribunal tries both.[3]

What remains non-compoundable

Rape, dowry death, grievous hurt for dowry and the other offences under the Act are not compoundable, whatever the families agree. A settlement in such a case may affect a complainant's willingness to give evidence, but the prosecution belongs to the state. Equally, section 17 punishes a person who files a case under the Act knowing it to be false, and the tribunal can take up that offence on its own motion.[3] A woman under pressure to settle should raise any safety concern with the legal aid office at the outset; refusing to compromise a non-compoundable case carries no legal penalty.

The pre-case mediation schedule to the Legal Aid Services Act now refers to dowry and section 11 complaints, alongside cheque dishonour, family, rent, partition and parental maintenance disputes.[5] The civil and family side of that scheme is explained in our guide to legal aid in Bangladesh.

Withdrawal of a complaint under section 248

In a case instituted on a complaint and tried as a summons case, the complainant may, at any time before a final order, satisfy the magistrate that there are sufficient grounds to withdraw the complaint. If the magistrate permits withdrawal, the accused must be acquitted.[1] Section 248 sits in the chapter on summons cases, so it is the natural route for minor complaint cases that the parties have resolved. A settlement is usually the "sufficient ground", but the magistrate still has to be satisfied that the withdrawal is genuine and voluntary.

A related power in section 249 allows a Metropolitan Magistrate or Magistrate of the first class, in a summons case not instituted on a complaint, to stop proceedings at any stage for recorded reasons and release the accused.[1] Neither provision lets a private party end a police case for a serious offence. In a warrant case or a sessions case, the complainant's change of heart matters as evidence, not as a veto.

Withdrawal in civil cases distinguished

Civil suits are withdrawn under the Code of Civil Procedure, not the criminal code, and different consequences follow, including whether a fresh suit can be filed. Where the same transaction has produced both a civil suit and a criminal case, a settlement should deal with both expressly, so that the compromise in criminal cases Bangladesh courts record is not undermined by a civil claim left running, or the reverse.

Withdrawal from prosecution by the public prosecutor under section 494

Any public prosecutor may, with the consent of the court, withdraw from the prosecution of any person, either generally or for one or more offences, at any time before judgment. Withdrawal before a charge is framed results in discharge; withdrawal after a charge is framed, or where no charge is required, results in acquittal for those offences.[1] The distinction matters: a discharged accused can in principle be proceeded against again, while an acquittal is final.

The decision to withdraw is the prosecutor's, usually on government instruction, but the consent is the court's. A court asked to consent should look at the record and satisfy itself that withdrawal serves the administration of justice rather than an improper purpose. Victims and complainants may place objections before the court, and a refusal or grant of consent can be challenged in revision. For the High Court Division's revisional jurisdiction, see our guide to criminal revision in Bangladesh.

Government withdrawal of harassment cases, 2025 to 2026

Since August 2024 successive governments have used section 494 on a large scale to end what they describe as politically motivated harassment cases. Under the interim government, a central committee chaired by the Law Adviser, with four-member field committees led by district magistrates and including superintendents of police and public prosecutors, reviewed cases. By 16 March 2025 the central committee had examined 6,295 cases and recommended withdrawal of 6,202.[10]

After the February 2026 election the process was rebuilt. A four-member district committee headed by the district magistrate was formed on 5 March 2026, and a six-member central committee headed by the Law Minister on 8 March 2026. On 30 April 2026 the Law Minister, Md Asaduzzaman, told Parliament that 23,865 cases had been withdrawn and the remainder were being processed.[11]

The June 2026 procedure

A revised home ministry notification, reported on 11 June 2026, revoked the circular of 22 September 2024 and reset the district procedure. Committees consider cases lodged between January 2009 and 5 August 2024. The accused or a close relative applies to the district magistrate with lawyer-certified copies of the case papers; the district magistrate sends the file to the public prosecutor within seven working days; the prosecutor gives an opinion within fifteen working days; and the recommendation goes to the Ministry of Home Affairs within forty-five working days of the application.[12]

A government recommendation is not the end of the case. The public prosecutor must still apply under section 494 and the court must consent. Until that order is made, the accused must keep attending court and keep bail in place: an accused who stops appearing in reliance on a recommendation risks a warrant. Our guide to bail cancellation in Bangladesh explains how quickly bail can be lost through non-appearance.

Transfer of criminal cases under sections 526, 526B and 528

Settlement is not the only reason parties come back to court mid-case. Sometimes the problem is the forum itself. The Code gives three tiers of transfer power, and choosing the right tier first is essential, because the High Court Division will not hear an intra-district transfer application that has not first been made to the Sessions Judge.[1]

High Court Division: section 526

The High Court Division may act where it appears that a fair and impartial inquiry or trial cannot be had in a subordinate court; that a question of law of unusual difficulty is likely to arise; that a view of the place of the offence may be required; that transfer will serve the general convenience of the parties or witnesses; or that it is expedient for the ends of justice or required by the Code. It may then order a case or appeal transferred to another court of equal or superior jurisdiction, try the case itself, or direct that the accused be sent for trial to itself or a Court of Session.[1]

The procedure is strict. The application is made by motion supported by affidavit; an accused applicant must give the public prosecutor written notice and the grounds, with at least twenty-four hours before the hearing on the merits; the court may require the accused to give a bond to cover compensation to the opposing party; and a frivolous or vexatious application can attract compensation of up to one thousand taka. No transfer application lies to the High Court Division between courts in the same sessions division unless the Sessions Judge has refused it.[1]

Sessions Judge: section 526B

A Sessions Judge may transfer any particular case from one criminal court to another within the sessions division where that is expedient for the ends of justice, on the lower court's report, a party's application or on the judge's own initiative. Sub-sections (4) to (10) of section 526, including notice, bond and adjournment, apply to the application.[1]

Withdrawal and recall: section 528

Section 528 lets a Sessions Judge withdraw or recall a case from a Joint Sessions Judge, and recall a case or appeal made over to an Additional Sessions Judge before the trial or hearing has begun, then try it personally or make it over to another court. The Chief Metropolitan Magistrate or Chief Judicial Magistrate may likewise withdraw or recall cases from subordinate magistrates, and reasons must be recorded in writing.[1]

Grounds that succeed and the adjournment right

Transfer is granted on a reasonable apprehension of unfairness, not on dislike of adverse orders. Applications that succeed usually show something concrete: hostility or a relationship on the bench, threats to witnesses in the locality, related cases split between courts, or a court that has prejudged the issue. Under section 526(8), a party who tells the trial court before the defence closes that it intends to apply for transfer is entitled to an adjournment on giving a bond of up to two hundred taka, though a Court of Session need not adjourn where the applicant has already had a reasonable opportunity and failed to use it.[1]

Legal aid for criminal cases in Bangladesh

A compromise is only fair if both sides understand it, and a transfer or withdrawal application is only useful if someone files it. State-funded legal aid is therefore part of any honest account of compromise in criminal cases Bangladesh accused persons and victims face.

The statutory scheme

The Legal Aid Services Act 2000 defines a litigant to include a prospective or actual complainant or accused in criminal proceedings, so legal aid is not limited to civil claims.[5] As amended by the Legal Aid Services (Amendment) Act 2026, Act No. 45 of 2026, the Act requires the government to establish the Bangladesh Legal Aid Directorate as the sole government body for legal aid; on its establishment the National Legal Aid Services Organisation (NLASO) is dissolved and its staff and work pass to the Directorate. District, metropolitan, upazila and union committees maintain panels of lawyers, and legal aid officers drawn from the judicial service advise applicants and mediate.[5]

Jail legal aid

Undertrial prisoners who cannot afford a lawyer are a core legal aid group, and some district offices now work inside prisons. In November 2023 the Chattogram District Legal Aid Office opened a Legal Aid Corner at Chattogram Central Jail, assisting 122 inmates in about a month, including long-term detainees who later obtained bail.[14] Families should ask the jail authority and the district legal aid office together, and keep a copy of the application.

State defence in Sessions trials

Independently of the 2000 Act, a person tried for an offence punishable with death is entitled to a lawyer at state expense. Section 340 of the Code gives every accused the right to be defended by a pleader, and Chapter XII, rule 1 of the Legal Remembrancer's Manual 1960 requires legal assistance at trial for a person charged with a capital offence unless the court certifies that the accused can afford one. In Babu Khan v State (2003) the High Court Division set aside a murder conviction because the accused had no lawyer at any stage, holding that the Sessions Judge's failure to appoint one vitiated the trial, read with Article 33 of the Constitution.[1] [13]

For an accused, the advice is simple: if there is no lawyer at the first appearance before the Sessions Judge, say so, and ask for a state defence lawyer or a legal aid panel lawyer. For a victim in a dowry or family-violence case, the same office can provide a lawyer and mediation, and can do so without cost. The organisational detail, eligibility and application process are covered in our legal aid in Bangladesh guide.

Compromise in criminal cases Bangladesh: a step-by-step approach

The legal routes differ, but a disciplined approach is the same. The sequence below reflects how we prepare complainants, accused persons and companies for a settlement.

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Two further points apply throughout. A settlement does not cancel an existing warrant or bail condition, so attendance must continue until the court passes its order. And a statement made in negotiations may later be used against an accused if the deal collapses; any admission belongs in a carefully drafted petition, not in a casual message. Our guide to retracted confessions in Bangladesh explains how damaging an unguarded statement can be.

Common mistakes in compromise, withdrawal and transfer

• Paying before the order: an accused who pays in full against an informal promise, without a compounding petition or section 345(8) order, has no protection if the complainant then gives evidence.
• Compounding the wrong section: a petition that compounds sections 323 and 506 leaves a section 326 or 307 charge untouched.
• Ignoring co-accused: composition benefits only the accused with whom it is made, so every accused should be named.
• Treating a government recommendation as withdrawal: only a section 494 order with the court's consent ends the case.
• Going straight to the High Court Division: an intra-district transfer application must first be made to the Sessions Judge.
• Pressuring a victim: a settlement obtained by threats is not voluntary, can be set aside and may itself be an offence.

What to watch in 2026 and 2027

Three developments will shape compromise in criminal cases Bangladesh courts permit over the next year. First, how trial courts use section 345(8): whether magistrates begin referring compoundable cases to legal aid officers routinely, as civil courts did with mediation. Second, whether the Appellate Division resolves the split among High Court Division benches on giving effect to settlements in cheque cases. Third, the progress of the harassment-case committees, which will continue to generate section 494 applications across the country.[2] [7] [12]

If you are negotiating a settlement, opposing a withdrawal, seeking a transfer or need representation, the earliest decisions carry the most weight. TRW's criminal quashment and High Court Division practice handles settlements, section 561A applications, revisions and transfers. Contact TRW to discuss your case.

Frequently asked questions

Can a criminal case be settled by compromise in Bangladesh?

Yes, if the offence is compoundable. Compromise in criminal cases Bangladesh law recognises runs through section 345: offences listed in section 345(1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure may be compounded by the victim, and those in section 345(2) with the court's permission. Composition acquits the accused. Other offences cannot lawfully be compounded.[1]

Is theft or cheating compoundable in Bangladesh?

Yes, with the court's permission. Theft under sections 379 to 381, criminal breach of trust under sections 406 to 408 and cheating under sections 417 to 420 of the Penal Code appear in the second table of section 345.[1]

Can murder or rape cases be compromised?

No. They are not in the section 345 tables, and section 345(7) prohibits compounding any offence except as that section provides. Even the Supreme Court's legal aid mediation scheme excludes murder, rape and section 326 offences.[1] [6]

Is a dowry case compoundable?

Offences under the Dowry Prohibition Act 2018 are cognizable, non-bailable and compoundable under section 7. Dowry-related simple hurt under section 11(c) of the women and children repression law is also compoundable; more serious section 11 offences are not.[3] [4]

What changed for section 11(c) cases in 2026?

Act No. 85 of 2026 raised the penalty to two to five years' rigorous imprisonment and, through new section 35, made the offence triable by a Magistrate of the first class under the ordinary Code, while keeping it compoundable and non-bailable.[3]

Can a cheque dishonour case be settled after conviction?

Section 138 is not compoundable, but in 2026 the High Court Division gave effect to settlements and acquitted convicts in revision. Other benches have only reduced the sentence to a fine, so the outcome depends on the court.[7] [9]

Can a complainant withdraw a criminal case?

In a complaint case tried as a summons case, the complainant may withdraw with the magistrate's permission under section 248, which results in acquittal. In a police case only the public prosecutor can withdraw, with the court's consent under section 494.[1]

How are political harassment cases withdrawn?

The accused applies to the district magistrate, the district committee and public prosecutor review the case, and the recommendation goes to the home ministry. The case ends only when the public prosecutor withdraws under section 494 with the court's consent.[1] [12]

How do I transfer a criminal case to another court?

Apply first to the Sessions Judge under section 526B for a transfer within the sessions division. If refused, or if the case needs to move outside the division, apply to the High Court Division under section 526 by motion supported by affidavit, with notice to the public prosecutor.[1]

Is free legal aid available to an accused in Bangladesh?

Yes. The Legal Aid Services Act 2000 covers accused persons who cannot afford a lawyer, and a person charged with a capital offence is entitled to state defence at trial unless the court certifies that they can afford counsel.[5] [13]