The Supreme Court declared the arrest illegal due to the police's failure to inform the detainee of the grounds for his arrest. Shocked by the Haryana Police's treatment—handcuffing and chaining him to a hospital bed—the Court ordered the state to issue guidelines to prevent such actions and ensure strict adherence to Article 22, including amending rules if required.

A bench of Justice Abhay S. Oka and Justice N. Kotiswar Singh recently overturned the Punjab & Haryana High Court's decision, which had refused to annul the appellant's illegal arrest.

The Court was informed of the cruel and inhuman treatment endured by the Appellant during his illegal detention by the Haryana Police. When taken to the hospital, he was handcuffed, and his legs were chained to the hospital bed.

Criticizing the police's treatment of the Appellant, the Court stated that his fundamental right to live with dignity, guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution, had been violated.

“Before we part with this judgment, we must refer to the shocking treatment given to the appellant by the police. He was taken to a hospital while he was handcuffed and he was chained to the hospital bed. This itself is a violation of the fundamental right of the appellant under Article 21 of the Constitution of India. The right to live with dignity is a part of the rights guaranteed under Article 21. We, therefore, propose to direct the State Government to issue necessary directions to ensure that such illegalities are never committed.”, the Court observed.

“The State of Haryana shall issue guidelines/departmental instructions to the police (i) to ensure that the act of handcuffing an accused while he is on a hospital bed and tying him to the hospital bed is not committed again. (ii) to ensure that the constitutional safeguards under Article 22 are strictly followed. If necessary, the State Government shall amend the existing Rules/guidelines;..”, the court ordered.

Case Title: VIHAAN KUMAR Versus THE STATE OF HARYANA AND ANR, SLP(Crl) No. 13320/2024