PRAVINKUMAR CHANDRAKANT VYAS Vs. STATE OF GUJARAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) .In the S.C.A. and L.P.A., common question of general importance raised by the petitioners is on the constitutional and legal validity of the circulars No. RB/618/476/1999 styled as Standing Order No. 28 dated 20-2-1999 and No. RB/618/1433/2001, dated 25-5-2001 of the Police Commissioner, Rajkot city to all his subordinate police officers.

(2.) We shall deal with and reproduce the contents of the two impugned circulars hereinafter. The two circulars in substance direct the subordinate police officers to make necessary investigation of the case of arrestees in any bailable offence and for that purpose interrogate them, take their finger prints, identification marks and photographs. He has advised the police officers not to forthwith release the accused on bail in bailable offences without making necessary preliminary investigation and for that purpose, if necessary, they may obtain remand from the Magistrate. One of the circulars also directs that if in a case of bailable offence, the arrestee is released within 16 hours, the concerned police officer shall submit a report with his cogent reasons to the Assistant Police Commissioner with a copy thereof to the Control Room for such release within 16 hours.

(3.) On behalf of some of the persons arrested by Rajkot Police for bailable offences in these two cases, it is complained that arrestees were not released within 16 hours by the concerned police because of the mandate contained in the two impugned circulars, although the arrestees were prepared to furnish bail.