hc reprimands police for unfair detention of journalist maharashtra government also provided compensation

Holding the arrest of a Thane journalist in an extortion case illegal, the Bombay High Court has said that no arrest should be made in a routine manner merely on the allegation of a crime and it would be prudent for the police to first verify its veracity. A division bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Shyam Chandak in its August 22 verdict directed the Maharashtra government to pay a compensation of ₹25,000 to journalist Abhijeet Padle, saying he was deprived of his right to liberty after being kept in prison for three years.

The court has also asked the Mumbai Police chief to initiate an inquiry into the conduct of policemen of the city’s Vakola police station who arrested the journalist. In his petition, Padale had sought the high court to declare his arrest and detention in the case illegal as the police had not first issued him a notice under Section 41A of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Under Section 41A, the police can issue a notice to a person accused in a case to record his statement and the person will not be arrested unless the police believes that the arrest is necessary.

In its order, the high court said that the offence against Padle was punishable with less than seven years of imprisonment and as such a notice under section 41A should have been served on him. The bench said that the police had prepared the notice but it was not served. The HC said that the existence of the notice under section 41A is enough to hold that the arrest of the petitioner was not necessary at all. The court said that Padle’s arrest was a gross violation of the orders of the CrPC.