Back
SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
UDAY UMESH LALIT, K.M. JOSEPH, JJ.
GAUTAM NAVLAKHA - APPELLANT
VERSUS
NATIONAL INVESTIGATION AGENCY - RESPONDENTS
CRIMINAL APPEAL NO.510 OF 2021[ARISING OUT OF SLP (CRIMINAL) NO. 1796 of 2021]
Decided on : 12-05-2021
Indian Penal Code,1860 - sections 153A/505(1)(B)/117/34 - Criminal Procedure Code,1973 - Sections 167, 41 , 43 , 41 (1)(a) to 41 (1) (d) , 156 , 167 read with 57 41(1)(ba), 56 - NIA Act - Section 21 - UAPA - Sections 43(D)(4), 56 and 57 - Criminal Procedure Code,1898 - Sections (81), 428 and 48 - Constitution of India,1950 - Article 22(2), 22(1), 21 , 22 , 22(1) , 19 ,32 , 22(1) and (2) - Seeking transit remand - Seeking a Writ of Habeas Corpus - On basis of FIR Police Station which was one registered under Sections 153A, 505(1B) and Section 34 of IPC to which Section 120(B) was added still further into which, Sections 13, 16, 17, 18, 18B, 20, 38 and 40 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and, in which FIR, name of the appellant was added - Appellant came to be arrested from his residence - Appellant moved Writ Petition seeking a Writ of Habeas Corpus in High Court - High Court apart from issuing notice, inter alia, ordered that no further precipitate action of removing appellant from Delhi be taken till the matter was taken - Identity of 10 as a police officer established upto my satisfaction upon his having shown his identity card. Heard - Transit remand Is granted till - Accused be produced before the concerned Ld. Special Court on without fail – Held, House arrest as part of custody under Section 167 has not engaged the courts including this Court issue has come into focus, and noticing its ingredients we have formed the view that it involves custody which falls under Section 167 – Court observe that under Section 167 in appropriate cases it will be open to courts to order house arrest - As to its employment, without being exhaustive, we may indicate criteria like age, health condition and antecedents of accused, the nature of crime, the need for other forms of custody and the ability to enforce terms of house arrest - Court would also indicate under Section 309 also that judicial custody being custody ordered, subject to following criteria, courts will be free to employ it in deserving and suitable cases - Post-conviction cases we would leave it open to legislature to ponder over its employment – Court have indicated the problems of overcrowding in prisons and the cost to state in maintaining prisons – Appeal is dismissed.
Transit remand is considered a form of judicial custody, not police custody. It is an order passed by a judicial authority to facilitate the transfer of an accused from one jurisdiction to another for investigation or trial purposes. The purpose of transit remand is to ensure lawful custody during the transfer process, and it is granted under judicial supervision to prevent arbitrary detention. It is distinct from police custody, which is an initial detention by police authorities for investigation purposes. Therefore, transit remand falls within the realm of judicial custody, subject to judicial oversight and legal procedures (!) .
JUDGMENT :
K.M. JOSEPH, J.
1. Leave granted.
2. On the basis of FIR No. 4 of 2018 dated 08.01.2018, registered at Vishrambagh Police Station, Pune, Maharashtra, which was one registered under Sections 153A, 505(1B) and Section 34 of IPC to which Section 120(B) was added on 06.03.2018 and still further into which, Sections 13, 16, 17, 18, 18B, 20, 38 and 40 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (hereinafter referred to as ‘the UAPA’, for short), were added on 17.05.2018, and, in which FIR, the name of the appellant was added on 22.08.2018, the appellant came to be arrested from his residence in Delhi on 28.08.2018. The appellant moved Writ Petition No. 2559 of 2018 seeking a Writ of Habeas Corpus in the High Court of Delhi. The High Court, apart from issuing notice, inter alia, ordered that no further precipitate action of removing the appellant from Delhi be taken till the matter was taken at 04:00 P.M.. The Order was passed at 02:45 P.M.. In the meantime, the CMM at Saket, Delhi disposed of an Application seeking transit remand with the following Order:
PS: Vishrambagh, Pune, Maharashtra U/s: 153A/505(1)(B)/117/341PC & u/s 13/15/17/18/185/20/39/40 of Unlawful Activities Prevention Act. State Vs. Gautam Pratap Navlakha
28.08.2018
Present: Sh. Jagdamba Pandey, Ld. APP for the State
IO Assistant Police Inspector Sushil V. Bobde alongwith ACP Ganesh Gawade and DCP Bachchan Singh Inspector Sanjay Gupta, PS Special Cell, Lodhi Colony, New Delhi.
Accused Gautam Pratap Navlakha produced in Police custody. Sh. Om Prakash, Ld. LAC for the accused.
This is a handwritten application preferred by the 10 Assistant Police Inspector Sushil V. Bodbe seeking transit remand of two days the above noted accused persons. The identity of 10 as a police officer of P Vishrambagh, Pune, Maharashtra is established upto my satisfaction upon his having shown his identity card. Heard. It is submitted by the IO that above noted accused is required in above noted case FIR registered at PS Vishrambagh, Pune, Maharashtra and has been arrested from his house at Kalkaji, Delhi. It is further submitted by the IO that the accused has been arrested without warrant and he is required to be produced before competent Court i.e. Court of Ld. Special Court, Shivaji Nagar, Pune, Maharashtra and therefore, his transit remand may be granted.
Heard. Considered. I have given my thoughtful consideration to the submissions made by the IO and the APP for the State.
As per the police papers, FIR No 4/18 has been registered under sections 153A/505(1)(B)/117/34 IPC & u/s 13/16/17/18/18B/20/39/40 of Unlawful Activities Prevention Act at police station Vishronbagh, Pune, Maharashtra wherein the accused is required. As per the arrest memo the accused namely Gautam Pratap Navlakha was arrested on 28.08.2018 at. 2.15 pm at Kalkajl, Delhi. Intimation of arrest of accused has been given to his partner/friend.
As the accused is required for further investigation of the case, therefore, his transit remand Is granted till 30.08.2018. The accused be produced before the concerned Ld. Special Court, Shivaji Nagar, Pune, Maharashtra on or before 30.08.2018 without fail. Accused be got medically examined as per rules and the directions of the Hon'ble Supreme Court. A copy of this order be given dasti to the Investigating Officer.
Application of transit remand is disposed of accordingly.
Necessary record be maintained by the Ahlmad.
(Manish Khurana)
Commissioner/SE/
District Court, Saket
New.Delh1/28.08.2018”
3. Thereafter, when the Writ Petition, filed by the appellant before the High Court, came up at 04.00 P.M., the High Court passed the following Order on 28.08.2018:
(1) Right to personal liberty is birth right of every human being. Personal liberty is interlinked with right to life itself.(2) House arrest is also custody and forced detention. Safeguards under Ar....
Default bail—Essential requisite for availing statutory bail is that accused must have undergone authorised period of detention ordered by Magistrate.
The period of house arrest does not constitute custody for the purposes of section 167(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure if it is declared illegal and unsustainable in law by a competent court.
(1) Writ of Habeas Corpus – When there is a non-compliance of mandatory provisions along with a total non-application of mind, there may be a case for entertaining a writ of Habeas Corpus and that to....
The Enforcement Directorate officers are not Police officers under CrPC, thus they cannot seek custody beyond the initial 24 hours of arrest unless substantively justified; however, compliance with P....
The court ruled that for offences punishable up to ten years, police custody is limited to 15 days within the first 40 days of investigation, emphasizing the importance of timely investigations to pr....
The filing of a complaint within the stipulated time precludes the entitlement to default bail, regardless of remand order irregularities, which must comply with statutory requirements.
The right to bail under Section 167(2) of the Cr.P.C. is contingent upon the completion of the investigation within the prescribed time frame, which is calculated from the date of judicial remand, no....
A writ of habeas corpus is not maintainable if the petitioner is in judicial custody under valid remand orders, and issues regarding the legality of arrest must be raised at the time of remand.
An indispensable Tool for Legal Professionals, Endorsed by Various High Court and Judicial Officers
Please visit our Training & Support
Center or Contact Us for assistance
Scan Me!
India’s Legal research and Law Firm App, Download now!
For Daily Legal Updates, Join us on :
Back to top
