The requirement of informing a person of the grounds for arrest is a mandatory requirement of Article 22(1) of the Constitution and Section 47 of BNSS, and absence of the same would render the arrest illegal a series of Supreme Court judgments such as Pankaj Bansal v. Union of India and Others [2023 INSC 866], Prabir Purkayastha v. State (NCT of Delhi) [2024 INSC 414], Vihaan Kumar v. State of Haryana and Others (2025 INSC 162] and Mihir Rajesh Shah v. State of Maharashtra and Another [2025 INSC 1288].
Not only to the Arrestee but to the Family Also
The Supreme Court in Kasireddy Upender Reddy v. State of Andhra Pradesh [2025 INSC 768] has held that the grounds of arrest should not only be provided to the arrestee but also to his family members and relatives so that necessary arrangements are made to secure the release of the person arrested at the earliest possible opportunity so as to make the mandate of Art.22 (1) meaningful and effective, failing which such arrest would be rendered illegal.
If Arrested on a Warrant, the Warrant Becomes the Reason
In the Kasireddy Upender Reddy case, the Supreme Court observed: “If a person is arrested on a warrant, the grounds for reasons for the arrest is the warrant itself; if the warrant is read over to him, that is sufficient compliance with the requirement that he should be informed of the grounds for his arrest. If he is arrested without a warrant, he must be told why he has been arrested. If he is arrested for committing an offence, he must be told that he has committed a certain offence for which he would be placed on trial. In order to inform him that he has committed a certain offence, he must be told of the acts done by him which amounts to the offence. He must be informed of the precise acts done by him for which he would be tried”.
Arrest To Be Made Known to Near Relatives
The High Court of Kerala in Alvin Riby v. State of Kerala (2025 KER 67079) by following Kasireddy Upender Reddy case stated above held that the failure to communicate the grounds of arrest to the near relatives renders the arrest illegal.
