GUWAHATI: The Supreme Court has condemned the practice of police arresting accused individuals after the filing of a chargesheet if they were not detained during the investigation phase. The apex court expressed surprise when informed that such a practice is prevalent in Uttar Pradesh, calling it "unusual" and illogical.
A bench comprising Justices JB Pardiwala and R Mahadevan remarked, "We do not propose to say anything about this unusual practice except that it makes no sense."
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The bench emphasised that once an investigation is completed and the chargesheet is submitted, the accused should be directed to appear before the trial court and furnish bail. If the investigating officer required further interrogation, the arrest should have been made during the investigation itself. The court observed that making a formal arrest post-investigation serves no purpose.
The remarks were made while granting bail to a petitioner charged under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. The court noted that the petitioner was not arrested during the investigation, and the chargesheet had already been filed, with the trial court taking cognisance. In light of these facts, bail was granted.
The court also referred to prior rulings to state the impropriety of routine arrests in such scenarios:
Siddharth v. State of Uttar Pradesh (2021): The Supreme Court held that police are not obligated to arrest an accused at the time of filing the chargesheet.
Satender Kumar Antil v. CBI (2021): The court issued guidelines to prevent unnecessary arrests of accused persons who had cooperated with the investigation or were not detained during its course.
Despite these rulings, the court expressed frustration that trial courts and investigative agencies continue to ignore these precedents.
In Tarsem Lal v. Directorate of Enforcement (2024), the Supreme Court reiterated that agencies like the Enforcement Directorate cannot arrest an accused after the trial court has taken cognisance of the chargesheet.