D.K BASU CASE GUIDELINES

"D.K. Basu vs State of West Bengal" is a landmark judgment by the Supreme Court of India that laid down eleven guidelines to be followed during the arrest and detention of individuals by the police. These guidelines are intended to protect the fundamental rights of the citizens and ensure that the police do not misuse their power. The eleven guidelines are as follows:

1) The police officer making the arrest must wear a visible and clear identification.

 

2) The person being arrested must be informed of the grounds of arrest, and the right to bail and legal representation.

 

3) The person being arrested must be made aware of his/her right to have a relative or friend informed about the arrest.

 

4) The arresting officer must prepare a memo of the arrest at the time of arrest and it should be attested by at least one witness who may be either a family member of the person arrested or a respectable person of the locality from where the arrest is made.

 

5) The person arrested must be medically examined at the time of arrest, and again after every 48 hours during detention.

 

6) The person arrested must be produced before the nearest magistrate within 24 hours of arrest.

 

7) The person arrested must be permitted to meet his/her lawyer during interrogation, though not throughout the interrogation.

 

8) A police control room should be provided at all district and state headquarters, where information regarding the arrest and the place of custody of the person arrested shall be communicated by the officer causing the arrest, within 12 hours of effecting the arrest.

 

9) The arresting officer must inform the person arrested about his/her right to inform someone about the arrest, and the details of the arrest, as soon as he/she is brought to the police station.

 

10) The person arrested must be given copies of all documents and the FIR (First Information Report) relating to the arrest.

 

11) If the person is arrested in a place other than his/her residence, the arresting officer must inform a family member or a friend about the arrest and the place of detention unless the person arrested has requested otherwise.