Mumbai, June 30: The Bombay High Court has declared the arrest of a Mumbai businessman accused in a rape and extortion case illegal, holding that the police failed to comply with the mandatory constitutional requirement of furnishing him with proper written grounds of arrest before producing him before a magistrate.
The court, however, clarified that it had not examined the merits of the allegations and granted liberty to the police to arrest him again in accordance with law.
High Court Quashes Arrest
Justice Shyam Chandak quashed the arrest of the businessman, along with the remand orders passed on May 22, 25 and 28, 2026, in connection with an FIR registered by the Tardeo Police on charges including rape, extortion, criminal intimidation and offences under the Information Technology Act.
According to the prosecution, the complainant alleged that the businessman, a family friend, secretly clicked obscene photographs of her during a family trip to London in August 2024 and later used them to blackmail and repeatedly sexually assault her. She also alleged that he demanded Rs 50 lakh to delete objectionable videos before lodging the FIR in May 2026.
Court Finds Procedural Lapse
The businessman challenged his arrest, arguing that while the police had informed him of the statutory provisions invoked against him, they had failed to communicate the specific factual grounds for his arrest, violating Articles 21 and 22 of the Constitution and provisions of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS).
Accepting the contention, the court said the communication issued by the police merely stated that a complaint had been filed and that the accused was involved in the crime, but did not disclose the basic facts necessary to enable him to effectively oppose custodial remand or seek bail.
"The communication... was not sufficient or a substantive compliance of the legal requirement of informing the 'grounds of arrest'," Justice Chandak observed.
The judge further noted that the magistrate had also failed to record satisfaction that the constitutional safeguards had been complied with before authorising police custody.
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Fresh Action Permitted
Holding that procedural safeguards protecting personal liberty cannot be ignored, the court ruled: "The arrest of the petitioner is declared as illegal, it being in violation of Articles 21 and 22 of the Constitution of India."
At the same time, it clarified that the State is free to take fresh action in accordance with law if a case is made out.
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