Arrest Without Written Grounds Illegal: Allahabad High Court Orders Release, Warns of Suspension for Errant Cops
By Rajesh Pandey
The Allahabad High Court has delivered a strong message to the police machinery in Uttar Pradesh, ruling that failure to clearly and specifically record the grounds of arrest in the arrest memo amounts to serious dereliction of duty and will invite strict disciplinary action, including suspension.
Allowing a habeas corpus petition, a Division Bench of Justice Siddharth and Justice Jai Krishna Upadhyay ordered the immediate release of the petitioner and laid down a binding direction that any police officer in the state who does not disclose precise grounds of arrest in writing shall be placed under suspension and subjected to departmental proceedings.
The court observed that mechanical compliance with legal procedures, without meaningful substance, cannot be tolerated.
“Empty compliance of the law by merely filling out forms without substance amounts to a dereliction of duty,” the Bench remarked.
Violation of Constitutional and Statutory Safeguards
The High Court held that such lapses directly violate Article 22(1) of the Constitution of India, which guarantees an arrested person the right to be informed of the grounds of arrest, as well as statutory protections under Sections 50 and 50A of the Code of Criminal Procedure—now incorporated as Sections 47 and 48 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS).
Terming the situation alarming, the court said it was “high time” that police officers who routinely ignore these constitutional and statutory mandates are dealt with sternly.
The Bench directed that a copy of its order be immediately communicated to the Director General of Police, Uttar Pradesh, to ensure strict compliance across the state.
Background of the Case
The ruling came on a habeas corpus petition filed by Umang Rastogi and another, challenging the legality of an arrest and subsequent remand order passed by a civil judge in Gautam Buddha Nagar.
The petitioners contended that the arrest was illegal as the mandatory grounds of arrest were never furnished to the accused in writing, in clear violation of binding Supreme Court precedents, including Mihir Rajesh Shah vs State of Maharashtra and Priya Indoria vs State of Karnataka.
According to the plea, the petitioner was arrested on December 26, 2025, in Haldwani, Uttarakhand, without being informed of any specific grounds of arrest.
He was produced before a remand magistrate in Gautam Buddha Nagar the following day, but was not given a copy of the arrest memo.
When his counsel sought his release on these grounds, the magistrate rejected the application, prompting the petitioners to approach the High Court.
Court Finds Arrest Memo Defective
Upon examining the record, the High Court found that although the investigating officer had used the prescribed arrest memo format, the crucial column relating to the grounds of arrest was left effectively blank.
Clause 13 of the standardized arrest memo, the court noted, requires the police to clearly record:
- the material showing the accused’s involvement,
- the necessity of arrest based on evidence collected, and
- details of documentary or electronic evidence relied upon.
Instead of complying with these requirements, the sub-inspector merely recorded that the accused had been informed of the offences and legal sections invoked, and that his father was informed over the phone.
Comparing the arrest memo with a circular issued by the DGP on July 25, 2025, the court observed that Clauses 13(i) to 13(vi) had been completely ignored.
The Bench clarified that merely stating the sections of law does not satisfy the requirement of disclosing “all the material from which the involvement of the accused in the crime is clear.”
‘Justification of Illegality’
Taking strong exception to the police conduct, the High Court described the action as “empty compliance with the law” and a “justification of illegality.”
It said the very purpose of introducing a new, detailed arrest memo—to ensure transparency and accountability—had been defeated by the investigating officer.
Relying heavily on the Supreme Court’s ruling in Mihir Rajesh Shah, which mandates that grounds of arrest must be supplied to the arrestee in writing, the High Court declared both the arrest and the subsequent remand order dated December 27, 2025, to be illegal, null, and void.
The judgment, delivered on January 2, sends a clear signal that procedural shortcuts in arrests will no longer be tolerated, reinforcing constitutional safeguards and strengthening protections against arbitrary deprivation of liberty.
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