Sir, 

I am writing this letter regarding the grave situation of injustice that the people of India are facing due to inappropriate laws. The fundamental right of Life and Liberty of Indian citizen secured under Article 21 of the Constitution of India is getting violated repeatedly and is at risk.

The Law allows that if a complaint is lodged against a person, police can arrest that person without any evidence against him. The law is incorporated to give the freedom to police so that they can act without any hassle to deliver justice. Although the law has been made in good faith but instead of boon it has become a bane for the society.

An innocent person is not safe in the country and can be arrested anytime without committing any crime, hence losing his dignity, career and everything, which is a violation of the Article 21 of the Constitution of India. There is a difference where police arrest a person by error and where an arrest is made with malafide intentions, knowing well that person is innocent and arrest is not in the interest of justice. 

In the current situation, a deliberate false complaint can be lodged against any innocent person and he can be arrested without any evidence. What is happening is if any person wants to settle any personal score or want to commit extortion, he/she just files a false complaint of a heinous offence against a person and gets that person arrested. These complaints/FIRs are not lodged as some crime has occurred but are lodged as current law allows arrest of innocent person just on a false complaint. In all these cases crime has never taken place.

This way the law has made the extortion legal, any innocent person can be arrested and then asked for money in lieu of his freedom from arrest. Any innocent person can be legally abducted in the guise of arrest. The mediation processes after filing of false complaint has become legal extortion channels, wherein innocent citizen are threatened with arrest if they don’t submit to extortion demands. Even during bail process innocent citizen are harassed and threatened with adverse orders if they don’t submit to extortion demands. Whereas “Bail should be a rule and arrest exception”, this jurisprudence has been sent for a toss, as people are threatened with bail rejections if they don’t voluntarily agree to unreasonable conditions. Whereas bail is a basic human and fundamental right provided under Article 21, it has become a priced entity in India.  Police personnel also consider that it is their right that they can arrest anyone, even if they know that that person hasn’t committed any crime. There have been cases where person is arrested on false rape charges and forced to marry the complainant with the threat of arrest and rejection of bail. There have been cases where accused has been forced to pay huge money in false cases of dowry / molestation / rape with the threat of arrest and rejection of bail. There have been gangs trapping innocent people by filing false rape cases against them and then extorting money from them. All this has become possible as law allows arrest of an innocent person just on a false complaint against him, violating the fundamental right under Article 21 of the citizen of India.

In this state of affairs, it is the responsibility of legislature to come forward and save the innocent people of India out of their misery. The misery which has been created by the law itself, the law which is unconstitutional as it violates fundamental right under Article 21 of the citizen. Any arrest without proper documentary evidence should be totally stopped and should be made illegal. When authorities have failed to curb the arrest of innocent people and failed to take any action against the culprits, who using the colour of their uniform deliberately arrest innocent people, in these circumstances authorities cannot have any right to arrest the people. 

The law which violates the fundamental rights of a citizen cannot be termed as constitutional. Especially when it is known that arrest on fake allegations is widely misused, wherein complaints are filed just for the purpose of arrest. Fundamental right of liberty under Article 21, of people cannot be violated just on the allegations against him, without any documentary proof of the allegations. A person should only be arrested when there is any documentary evidence against him or only after the conviction of the accused.

 

Some data which shows how gruesome the situation is: 

Below data from NCRB shows that annually approx. 1.3 Crore people of India face arrest in one form or the other. 

 
Below data from NCRB revels the startling figures: 

The total convicts depict the convicted criminals accumulated over many years. That means while there are total only 1.4 Lakh convicts in jail, total of 1.3 Crore innocent Indians are getting arrested every year. While criminals are not getting arrested and convicted, it is the innocent Indian who is suffering by facing unconstitutional arrest without committing any crime. 

            The figures show that criminal justice system of India has failed at both ends. At one end it has violated the fundamental right of innocent citizen and at the other end it has failed to convict the criminals. The Indian legal system has become criminal’s delight while innocent people are crucified. 

Below data shows number of arrests every year against the number of convicts in jail, for some specific heinous offences: 

 

The above data itself shows that law is doing more harm than justice to the society. The arrest just on the complaint is deterrent to the interest of the society.  

           For offences like “Cruelty by husband”, “Rape” or “Assault on women” or under “SC/ST Act”, it is possible that complaint can be filed even without the occurrence of offence. In these cases arrest of accused (innocent) people are more than 100 times the convicts in jail, because Purpose of these complaints is arrest for extortion rather than conviction. These figures confirm the view point that without even occurrence of offence, complaints are getting lodged and innocent person are getting arrested just on the false allegations. 

Arrest of innocent people has also other bitter effects:

1)    People are losing faith in justice system.

2)    The time of police which should be utilized is proper maintenance of law and order is getting wasted in dealing with false complaints.

3)    The crime has become legal, as extortion can be committed legally

4)    It is pushing the people in becoming criminal, as when a person goes to Jail without committing any crime, he loses faith in system and also gets into the company of criminals.

5)    This clogs the justice system as it over burdens both police and judiciary.  

6)    Enormous public money gets spent on managing the arrested innocent people. 

7)    Enormous time of courts is spent in bail process.

8)    The Criminal justice system has been clogged with fake cases.

 

There should be strict law that a person cannot be arrested unless he/ she is caught red handed while commission of an offence or unless there is concrete evidence against that person. Just a verbal complaint should not be enough to arrest a person for any crime how so ever heinous it is.  

The law has become a weapon of destruction for the society, and it is high time that appropriate measures should be taken. It is settled principle that a person is innocent until proven guilty and law authorities have no constitutional right to curtail the liberty of any citizen without any evidence against him.

Section 42 of CrPC mandates that accused has to reveal his identity and address, in case of non-cognizable offences. As long as that condition is satisfied he cannot be arrested. There is no reason to arrest an accused, even for cognizable offences if this condition is satisfied. An accused cannot be arrested on assumption that he will hamper/interfere with the investigation. A person cannot be arrested in anticipation that he may commit a crime.  

India has a great history and in every era of society; justice, human rights and human values had been given utmost importance. It is inconceivable that in today’s India, law itself is creating injustice and violating human rights, wherein just on a false complaint an innocent person can be arrested, harassed, humiliated and his life destroyed.

Is there no value of human dignity in India?

It is horrendous that law allows arrest of a person even without single evidence against him.  

Until the court proves a person guilty, no authority even court should have any right to curtail the human rights and fundamental rights of a person. It is the responsibility of the system to first prove the guilt of a person and then only interfere with the free life of an Indian citizen.  

 

When there are so many false complaints getting filed; When no action is getting taken against false complainants to curb false complaints; When no action is getting taken against the officials who deliberately curtail the freedom of innocent people; when there is delay in prosecution proceedings, in these circumstances innocent citizen cannot be made to pay the price of inefficient legal system

The demand of the time is that 

1)    All offences should be made bailable. Criminal justice system is not established to arrest anyone just on a complaint but it is made to deliver justice, and arresting innocent people is in no way delivers justice. 

2)    Repeal/ amend Section 41(1) of CrPC and make Section 41(2) applicable to cognizable offences also.

3)    Any arrest without evidence be made illegal and punishable offence.

4)    Arrest should be allowed only when 

         a)    Accused is caught red handed.

         b)    Whereabouts / address of the accused cannot be confirmed.

         c)     An accused has absconded.

         d)    Conviction of an accused. 

 

I humbly request that due consideration be given to this letter in interest of justice and for the wellbeing of people of India.

 

Yours sincerely

 

Mohit Mittal