What procedure should Police follow to Arrest a person?
ARREST:
1. Police Officers carrying out an arrest or interrogation should bear clear identification and name tags with designation. The particular of police personnel carrying out the arrest or interrogation should be recorded contemporaneously, in a register kept at the Police Station.
2. The police officer making an arrest should also record in the case diary, the reasons for making the arrest.
3. As a rule, use of force should be avoided while effecting arrest. However, in case of forcible resistance to arrest, minimum force to overcome such resistance may be used. Care must be taken to ensure that injuries to the person being arrested, visible or otherwise, is avoided.
4. The police officer carrying out the arrest shall prepare a memo of arrest at the time of arrest and such memo shall be attested by at least one witness, who may be either 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 arrested and shall contain the time and date of arrest.
5. The dignity of the person being arrested should be protected. Public display or parading of the person arrested should not be permitted at any cost.
6. Searches of the person arrested must be done with due respect to the dignity of the person, without force or aggression and with care for the person’s right to privacy. Searches of women should only be made by other women officers with strict regard to decency.
7. The use of handcuffs or leg chains should be avoided and if handcuffing is necessary it should be resorted to strictly in accordance with the law.
8. An arrested person being held in custody is entitled, if he so requests to have one friend, relative or other person who is known to him or likely to take an interest in his welfare told as far as is practicable that he has been arrested and where is being detained.
9. The police officer shall inform the arrested person when he is brought to the Police Station of this right.
10. An entry shall be required to be made in the diary as to who was informed of the arrest.
11. The Police officer should send a copy of the case diary with the reasons for making the arrest of the accused immediately to his Supervisory Officer.
12. 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 lives outside the district or town through the Legal Aid Organization in the District and the Police Station of the area concerned telegraphically within a period of 8 to 12 hours of the arrest.
13. As far as practicable women police officers should be associated where the person or persons being arrested are women. The arrest of women between sunset the sunrise should be avoided.
14. 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 effecting the arrest and its copy provided to the arrestee.
Ø When the person arrested is brought to the Police Station, he should, if he makes a request in this regard, be given prompt medical assistance. He must be informed of his right. Where the police officer finds that the arrested person is in a condition where he is unable to make such request but is in need of medical help, he should promptly arrange for the same. This must also be recorded contemporaneously in a register. The female requesting for medical help should be examined only by a female registered medical practitioner.
Ø As soon as the person is arrested, police officer effecting the arrest shall make a mention of the existence or non-existence of any injuries on the person of the arrestee in the register of arrest. If any injuries are found on person of the arrestee, full description and other particulars as to the manner in which the injuries were caused should be mentioned in the register, the entry so made shall also be signed by the police officer and the arrestee. At the time of release of the arrestee, a certificate to the above affect under the signature of the police officer shall be issued to the arrestee.
Ø If the arrestee has been remanded to police custody under the orders of the court, the arrestee should be subjected to the medical examination by a trained Medical Officer every 48 hours during his detention in custody by a doctor on the panel of approved doctor appointed by Director, Health Services of the concerned State or Union Territory. At the time of his release from the police custody, the arrestee shall be got medically examined and a certificate shall be issued to him stating wherein the factual position of the existence or of non-existence of any injuries on his person.
15. Where children or juveniles are sought to be arrested, no force or beatings should be resorted to under any circumstances. Police officers may, for this purpose, associate respectable citizens so that the children or juveniles are not terrorized and minimal coercion is used.
16. Where the arrest is without a warrant, the person arrested has to be immediately informed of the grounds of arrest in a language, which he or she understands. Again, for this purpose the police, if necessary, may take the help of respectable citizens. These grounds must have already been recorded in writing in police records. The person arrested should be shown the written reasons as well and also given a copy on demand.
17. Apart from informing the person arrested of the above rights, the police should also inform him of his right to consult and be defended by a lawyer of his choice. He should also be informed that he is entitled to free legal aid at state expense.
18. Information regarding the arrest and the place of detention should be communicated by the police officer effecting the arrest within 12 hours to the District and Central Police Control Rooms. Further at District/Central Police Control Room it should be displaced on day-to-day basis at a conspicuous place on a notice board. Every Police Station shall also display the details of arrestees at a conspicuous place for the knowledge of the public.
19. Copies of all the documents including the memo of arrest, referred to above, should be sent to the illaqa Magistrate for his record.
