The Karnataka High Court has rebuked police officers of the state for making arrests in blatant disregard of settled legal principles, questioning whether the police believed that “having a uniform” gave them unchecked authority.
The single-judge Bench of Justice M Nagaprasanna on Thursday ordered the immediate release of a man arrested in a forgery case lodged by his wife and directed a departmental inquiry against an investigating officer attached to Bagalur Police Station.
The Court observed that possessing a uniform did not grant absolute authority. Depriving a person of their liberty was a grave matter, not a trivial exercise. While those who commit crimes must face imprisonment, it must only be executed through due legal process, noted the Bench, while questioning the immediate necessity of arresting the husband in a forgery case arising out of a matrimonial dispute.
It further asked whether the husband should face immediate jail time solely because his wife filed a complaint. The judge pressed the police on why the accused was placed in lock-up over a dispute involving an allegedly forged marital partnership deed.
Appearing for the accused, Advocate Trivikram S submitted that the FIR was registered on December 19, 2025, alleging that the husband forged his wife’s signature to create a partnership deed and open a current account without her knowledge. It was argued that despite the FIR being registered months earlier, no substantial investigation was carried out before the accused was suddenly arrested.
The Court noted a strange shift in how the police handled the case. For the first three months, the original officer did virtually nothing. But as soon as a new officer named Ramesh took over, he actively pursued the matter, issuing notices to the accused and quickly throwing him in jail for allegedly failing to cooperate.
Justice Nagaprasanna reiterated that the Supreme Court has consistently held that arrest must be a last resort, particularly in offences punishable with imprisonment of seven years or less. The Court found no material justifying the arrest except a bald allegation that the accused was not cooperating with the investigation.
Holding that the investigating officer had acted contrary to law, the Court directed the competent authority to initiate departmental proceedings against the station house officer/investigating officer of Bagalur Police Station and submit a report within twelve weeks. An inquiry was also ordered against the previous investigating officer for failing to conduct any meaningful investigation after registration of the FIR.
The Registry was directed to immediately communicate the order electronically to jail authorities to secure the petitioner’s release without delay.
In a separate matter, the High Court criticised the Chitradurga Women Police Station Inspector for arresting the brother of a probationary police sub-inspector accused in a false promise to marry case, despite there being no direct allegation against him.Justice Nagaprasanna observed that the police had acted in clear abuse of their statutory powers, noting that they were effectively treating the law as a plaything.
The Bench questioned the logic behind the arrest, demanding to know how the second accused could be sent to prison when he had no connection to the offence, especially while the primary accused remained missing. The judge sharply asked the officers if they were playing games and questioned whether they were acting like a real police force.
The Court pointed out that the allegation against the second accused was merely that of harbouring an offender, which was a bailable offence and did not warrant custodial arrest.
Condemning the detention as a misuse of the law, the Court remarked that the police have begun treating the power of arrest casually. The judge reminded the officers that they are well aware of the severe consequences of an arrest, noting that it attaches a lifelong social stigma to an individual.
The Bench indicated that it was inclined to impose costs of Rs one lakh on the officer concerned and recover the amount personally from him. However, considering submissions made by State Public Prosecutor BN Jagadeesh, the Court refrained from passing such an order.
It also criticised the magistrates for mechanically granting remand orders without proper application of mind, observing that magistrates have the authority to refuse remand where arrest is unjustified. Observing that departmental proceedings ought to be initiated against the officers responsible for the illegal arrest, the Court adjourned the matter till July 2.
The post Karnataka High Court orders departmental inquiry against state police following arbitrary arrests appeared first on India Legal.