Bombay high court
Justices Sarang Kotwal and Ranjitsinha Bhonsale in an August 21 judgment said the question before the court was whether the detenu could be said to be arrested as soon as he reached the police station at about 11am or can he be said to be under arrest at 8.15pm to calculate the statutory period of 24 hours. He was produced before a court within 24 hours of his 8.15pm arrest. Every person who is arrested and detained in custody shall be produced before the nearest magistrate within a period of 24 hours of such arrest excluding the time necessary for the journey from the place of arrest to the court of the magistrate and no such person shall be detained in custody beyond the said period without the authority of a magistrate No police officer shall detain in custody a person arrested without warrant for a longer period than under all the circumstances of the case is reasonable, and such period shall not, in the absence of a special order of a magistrate under Section 187, exceed 24 hours exclusive of the time necessary for the journey from the place of arrest to the magistrate’s court, whether having jurisdiction or not
Because he was in touch with family members on his phone would not mean he was not in custody or control of police, the petitioner’s counsel cited a judgment where court had released a detenu holding that merely. “The detenu was made to wait so that the preliminary enquiry could be conducted. Therefore, we do not find fault with the procedure,’’ the HC held.
Mumbai: The Bombay high court held that an accused could not claim he was “under arrest” during a waiting period as police had a reasonable explanation of being busy with probe in another case. The HC said that case was distinguishable on facts as there the accused was already arrested and in custody of Pune police before he was taken to Baramati. The HC expressed satisfaction with the reason given by the investigating officer on why the arrest was not made immediately. It is reasonable to expect from the police officers to satisfy themselves about the involvement of an accused before effecting actual arrest. The police had taken sufficient precaution in this case.
The HC on hearing additional public prosecutor Supriya Kak said police were busy in another case where the accused in that case had suffered health issues and had to be taken to hospital.