New Delhi: In a landmark judgment strengthening constitutional safeguards for personal liberty, the Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that the grounds of arrest must be provided to every arrested person in writing and in their local language.
A bench of Chief Justice B R Gavai and Justice Augustine George Masih delivered the verdict in the case of Mihir Rajesh Shah vs State of Maharashtra, which emerged from the high-profile Mumbai BMW hit-and-run case of July 2024.
Justice Masih, in his 52-page judgment, said that the constitutional mandate under Article 22(1) of the Constitution guarantees that an arrested person must be informed of the grounds of arrest as soon as possible. He added that this requirement “is not a procedural ritual but a fundamental protection of personal freedom.”
The court further observed that it makes no difference whether the grounds for arrest are disclosed before or immediately after the arrest, as long as the individual is informed in a timely manner.
It also noted that in many cases, the police fail to communicate the reasons for the arrest, which undermines the constitutional right to liberty.
