Instalment payment permissible?

This is a criminal case and not civil so once you admit liability there will be convication no instalments.

S.138 matters can be referred to Lok Adalat or even mediation cells. Make an application citing the financial hardship and propose the payment plan, court cannot force complainant but will come out with some reasonable solution. The only problem would be that you may be convicted but jail is unlikely in this case. 

If this solution proposed by you is objected by complainant that he wants full money, then court will not listen to him, as this is not a recovery case and court need not even put financial penalty upto the cheque value. Court has power to convict you with Rs. 5000 as penalty even if cheque amount is much higher. Meanwhile start paying in installment, as the case is not likely to be decided in hurry.

The court cannot /should not  pass instructions for payment in instalments and instead should punish the accused with imprisonment for offence commited and fine.

We must understand that not all the cases involving cheque bounce happen due to dishonest intentions, but in strict legal parlance it will fall under offence u/s 138.

The objective of S.138 is to punish those drawers of cheque who dishonestly issue the cheque with no intention of clearing the same. Such accused should be sent to jail lock stock & barrel, but punishing all the accused convicted of S.138 by imprisonment would be bit too much.