SHRI DILIP K. BASU ETC. versus STATE OF WEST BENGAL AND ORS.

Citation: [1997] SUPP. 3 S.C.R. 219 · Decided: 01-08-1997 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: A.S. ANAND · Disposal: Disposed off
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Judgment (excerpt)

SHRI DILIP K. BASU ETC. 
A 
v. 
STATE OF WEST BENGAL AND ORS. 
·AUGUST 1, 1997 
[DR. A.S. ANAND AND K.T. THOMAS, JJ.] 
B 
Constitution of India, 1950 : 
Articles 21, 22 and 32-Custodial violence--Directions given in D.K 
Vasu's case*-Compliance report sought from respective authorities. 
C 
*D.K Basu .v. State of West Bengal, [1997) i SCC 416, referred to. 
. 
. 
CRIMINAL ORIGINAL JURISDICTION : Criminal Misc. Petition 
No. 4201 of 1997. 
Under Article 32 of the Constitution of India 
IN 
Writ Petition (Cr!.) No. 539 of 1986. 
Under Article 32 of the Constitution of India: 
Writ Petition (Cr!.) No. 592/87. 
D 
E 
Dr. A.M. Singhvi, Additional Solicitor General (A.C.), Ms. Suruchi 
Agrawal, Sushi! Kumar, Jain, Y.P. Dhainija, B. Krishna Prasad, Ms. A. 
Subhashini, B.B. Singh, Uma Nath Singh, B.S. Chahar; Ashok Mathur, Ms. F 
Hemantika Wahi, Ms. Nandini Mukherjee, Kailash Vasdev, C.K. Sasi, Raj 
Kumar Mehta, Dilip Sinha, K.R. Nagaraja, Ms. S. · Janani, Aruneshwar 
Gupta, G.Prakash, Ms. Beena Prakash, Shakil Ahmed Syed, S.M. Jadhav, 
D.M. Nargolkar, A.S. Pundir, R.B. Misra, Guntur Prabhakar, Prem Mal-
hotra, M. Veerappa, R.S. Sodhi, J.K. Manhas, v, Krihnamurthy, D.N. 
Mukherjee, T. Sridharan, Gopal Singh, D.S. Mehra, Ms. Kamakshi Singh G 
Mehlwal, V.G. Pragasam and Ms. KaminiJaiswal for the appearing parties. 
The following Order of the Court was dr.livered : 
On December 18, 1996 in D.K. Basu v. State of West Bengal, [1997] 
1sec416, this Court laid down certain basic "requirements' to be followed H 
:ii9 
SUPREME COURT REPORTS (1997] SUPP. 3 S.C.R. 
A in all cases of arrest or detention till legal provisions are made in that 
behalf as a measure to prevent custodial violence. The requirements read 
as follows: 
B 
c 
D 
E 
F 
G 
H 
"1. The police personnel carrying out the arrest and handling the 
interrogation of the arrestee should bear accurate, visible and clear 
identification and name tags with their designations. The par-
ticulars of all such police personnel who handle interrogation of 
the arrestee mu5t be recorded in a register. 
2. That the police officer carrying out the arrest of the arrestee 
shall prepare a memo of arrest at the time of arrest and such memo 
shall be attested by at least one witness, who may either be a 
member of the family of the arrestee or a respectable person of 
the locality from where the arrest is made. It shall also be counter-
signed by the arrestee and shall contain the time and date of arrest. 
3. A person who has been arrested or detained and is being held 
in custody in a police station or interrogation centre or other 
lock-up, shall be entitled to have one friend or relative or other 
person known to him or having interest in his welfare being 
informed, as soon as practicable, that he has been arrested and is 
being detained at the particular place, unless the attesting witness 
of the memo of arrest is himself such a friend or a relative of the 
arrestee. 
4. The time, place of arrest and venue of custody of an arrestee 
must be notified by the police where the next friend or relative of 
the arrestee Jives outside the district or town through the Legal 
Aid Organisation in the District and the police station of the area 
concerned telegraphically within a period of 8 to 12 hours after· 
the arrest. 
5. The person arrested must be made aware of this right to have 
someone informed of his arrest or detention as soon as he is put 
under arrest or is detained. 
6. An entry must be made in the diary at the place of detention 
regarding the arrest of the person which shall also disclosed the 
name of the next friend of the person who has been informed of 
the arrest and the names and particulars of the police officials in 
D.K. BJ\SU v. STATE 
221 
whose custody the arrestee is. 
A 
7. The arrestee should, where he so requests, be also examined at 
the time of his arrest and major and minor injuries, if any present 
on his/her body, must be recorded at that time. The "Inspection 
Memo" must be signed both by the arrestee and the police officer B 
effecting the arrest and its copy provided to the arrestee and the 
police officer effecting the arrest and its copy provided to the 
arrestee. 
8. The arrestee should be subjected to medical examination by a 
trained doctor every 48 hours during his detention in custody by C 
a doctor on the panel of approved doctors appointed by Director, 
Health Services of the State or Union Territory concerned. Direc-
tor, Health Services should
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