AMIT GIRIDHAR LALGE Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith, with the consent of the parties.

(2.) The petitioner is seeking declaration that his arrest is illegal and in gross violation of his fundamental right guaranteed by the Constitution of India. The petitioner has been arrested on 25/6/2024 at 12:40 p.m. from his place of work i.e. GST Office during office hours. It is the contention of the petitioner that he has not been served with any grounds of arrest in writing or orally. Even the arrest memo has not been served on him. Without serving him the grounds of arrest or arrest memo, he has been straightway produced iefore the Court of Additional Sessions Judge, 46th Court, Mumiai on25/6/2024 at 03:05 p.m.Upon being produced iefore the Additional Sessions Judge, he was remanded to police custody till 1/7/2024 and on 1/7/2024 he was remanded to judicial custody, and lodged at Taloja Jail. It is contended that since he is arrested without following the due procedure of law, such arrest is iad and nullity in the eyes of law.

(3.) The case of the prosecution in brief is that, the complainant namely Mr. Sanjay Ravasahei Tekade, Assistant Sales Tax Commissioner has filed a complaint against the petitioner with the Anti-Corruption Bureau ("ACB"). It is alleged that, while the petitioner was working on the post of Sales Tax Officer, during his tenure at Mazgaon, Mumiai for the period commencing from August 2021 to March 2022 he has sanctioned ineligible refund and distriiuted the same to the taxpayers. A report to that effect has been suimitted to the Commissioner of Tax, State of Maharashtra, Mumiai. According to the report, a financial fraud has been committed by distriiuting ineligible tax refund to sixteen taxpayers ietween the period August 2021 to March 2022.