S.151 CrPC | Arrest Without Warrant In Absence Of Knowledge Of Design To Commit Cognizable Offence Violates Article 21: Kerala High Court
Case: Anand Mahadevan V State Of Kerala
Coram: Justice Bechu Kurian Thomas
Case No.: CRL.MC NO. 1940 OF 2023
Court Observation: “The object of Section 151 of the Code is one of preventive justice and before invoking the said provision, it must be evident that there is imminent danger. Unless the arrest under Section 151 of the Code is based upon a bonafide belief of the existence of a design to commit a cognizable offence and without arresting the person, the threat of commission of offence cannot be averted, only then can the Police Officer be clothed with the power to arrest under Section 151 of Code. The corollary of the above is that, without the knowledge of a design and without an imminent threat to commit a cognizable offence, a Police Officer cannot arrest, that too without a warrant from the Magistrate in the exercise of the power under Section 151 of the Code.”
“Since the provision can be a possible source of misuse with Article 21 of the Constitution of India, remaining like a brooding omnipresence over the provisions of the Code, it is necessary to observe that in the absence of bonafide material or evidence of a design to commit an offence, which cannot be averted without arresting the person, the action under Section 151 of the Code would fall foul not only of Section 151 of the Code, but also of Article 21 of the Constitution of India.”
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