Opinion SC ruling making written grounds of arrest mandatory draws a much-needed red line
From prohibiting the police from taking custody of a woman after sunset or in the absence of female police officers, to requiring the police to mandatorily present an accused before a judge within 24 hours, procedural safeguards serve as a bulwark of individual rights and liberties, protecting citizens from state arbitrariness
While this provision has existed on paper since the enactment of penal laws, it has mostly been ignored as an inconvenience by the police. 
In a crucial ruling, the Supreme Court has said that the police must communicate the grounds of arrest to a person in writing, in the language he understands, within a reasonable time, and in any case at least two hours before the arrested individual is produced for remand proceedings before the magistrate. A bench headed by Chief Justice B R Gavai said that this key procedural safeguard will extend to all offences and not just those under stringent special statutes like the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA) and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (UAPA). In giving primacy to the personal liberty of an individual, the ruling sets a welcome precedent.
While this provision has existed on paper since the enactment of penal laws, it has mostly been ignored as an inconvenience by the police. The SC has repeatedly raised the bar in terms of protecting individuals from arbitrary arrest. In invalidating NewsClick editor Prabir Purkayastha’s arrest in 2024, it extended this procedural shield against arrest even to the stringent anti-terror legislation. The SC rightly acknowledged that the stigma attached to arrest undermines a person’s social dignity and results in consequences that reverberate beyond the individual: “The arrest of an individual invariably impacts not only the person arrested himself, but also the persons associated with him, i.e. family, friends, relatives, etc, affecting their psychological balance and overall social well-being. This Court has on several occasions underscored that there is a stigma attached to arrest which impairs the reputation and the standing of an individual in society.”
From prohibiting the police from taking custody of a woman after sunset or in the absence of female police officers, to requiring the police to mandatorily present an accused before a judge within 24 hours, procedural safeguards serve as a bulwark of individual rights and liberties, protecting citizens from state arbitrariness. With the SC standing guard, the police must comply with the law — in letter and spirit.
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