Judicial Trend in Protecting Human Rights of Persons in Police Custody

Abstract

A person is not liable to be arrested merely on the suspicion of complicity in an offence. The date and time of arrest shall be recorded in the memo which must also be countersigned by the arrestee. The right to counsel begins when a person is being interrogated and continues through pre-trial stages to trial and into appeal since it is an essential ingredient of reasonable, fair and just procedure. It would be prudent for the police officer to allow a lawyer where the accused wants to have one at the time of interrogation, if he wants to escape the censure that the interrogation is carried on in secrecy by physical and psychic torture. However these formalities are not at followed in all cases and in all countries. The higher police officials, even though they may be privately be critical of the actions of the lower officials, are having tendency to protect their fellowmen or the government from civil liability. Keywords: Arbitrary Arrest, Custodial Death, Judicial Review, Torture, Victim