Published on: October 14, 2023 at 13:28 IST
Court: Supreme Court of India
Citation: Pankaj Bansal V. Union of India (2023)
Honourable Supreme Court of India has held that authorized officer has to record in writing the reasons for forming the belief that the person proposed to be arrested is guilty of an offence punishable under Section 19 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002. It is further held that authorized officer has to forward a copy of the arrest order along with the material in his possession to the Adjudicating Authority in a sealed envelope.
It is held that the knowledge of grounds of arrest is mandatory in accordance with Article 22 of the Constitution of India.
32. In this regard, we may note that Article 22(1) of the Constitution provides, inter alia, that no person who is arrested shall be detained in custody without being informed, as soon as may be, of the grounds for such arrest. This being the fundamental right guaranteed to the arrested person, the mode of conveying information of the grounds of arrest must necessarily be meaningful so as to serve the intended purpose. It may be noted that Section 45 of the Act of 2002 enables the person arrested under Section 19 thereof to seek release on bail but it postulates that unless the twin conditions prescribed thereunder are satisfied, such a person would not be entitled to grant of bail.
The twin conditions set out in the provision are that, firstly, the Court must be satisfied, after giving an opportunity to the public prosecutor to oppose the application for release, that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the arrested person is not guilty of the offence and, secondly, that he is not likely to commit any offence while on bail.
To meet this requirement, it would be essential for the arrested person to be aware of the grounds on which the authorized officer arrested him/her under Section 19 and the basis for the officer’s ‘reason to believe’ that he/she is guilty of an offence punishable under the Act of 2002. It is only if the arrested person has knowledge of these facts that he/she would be in a position to plead and prove before the Special Court that there are grounds to believe that he/she is not guilty of such offence, so as to avail the relief of bail.
Therefore, communication of the grounds of arrest, as mandated by Article 22(1) of the Constitution and Section 19 of the Act of 2002, is meant to serve this higher purpose and must be given due importance.
Drafted By Abhijit Mishra