The Supreme Court recently ruled that an arrest made by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) was illegal and unconstitutional. The court found that the accused was not presented before a magistrate within 24 hours of the arrest, violating Article 22(2) of the Constitution. As a result, the court ordered the accused to be granted bail.

Case of Illegal Arrest:

In this case, the accused was detained at IGI Airport, Delhi, by the Immigration Bureau on March 5, 2022, at 11 AM due to a Lookout Circular (LOC) issued by the ED. However, the ED officially recorded the arrest on March 6, 2022, at 01:15 AM, claiming that the accused was presented before the magistrate at 3 PM on the same day, which was within the stipulated 24 hours.

The Supreme Court rejected this justification and ruled that the custody period should be counted from the initial detention at 11 AM on March 5, making the arrest illegal.

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A bench of Justices Abhay S. Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan clarified that:

"It is evident that the accused was detained on March 5, 2022, at 11 AM, but was not presented before the magistrate within 24 hours. This is a direct violation of Article 22(2), rendering the arrest unlawful."

The court also emphasized that fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution must be upheld in every arrest. If these rights are violated, bail must be granted.

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The Supreme Court explained that:

• Article 22(2) of the Constitution: States that any arrested person must be presented before a magistrate within 24 hours.
• Section 57 of CrPC: Mandates that the police must present an arrested person before a magistrate within 24 hours.
• Section 45 of PMLA: ED argued that bail should not be granted under PMLA. However, the court ruled that since the arrest itself was illegal, PMLA's bail conditions do not apply.

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Supreme Court’s Final Verdict:

The court concluded that:

1. The arrest was illegal, and the accused must be granted bail.
2. The accused’s fundamental rights were violated, making ED’s argument invalid.
3. If an arrest is unconstitutional, bail cannot be denied.

The Supreme Court dismissed ED’s appeal and ordered the immediate release of the accused on bail.

This landmark judgment reinforces the importance of upholding the fundamental rights of individuals. It sets a precedent that if an arrest is found to be unconstitutional, the accused must be granted bail without delay.