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Court’s relook at detention protects liberty

The principle it has laid down — the proverbial clock starts ticking when the police takes someone into custody, not when a formal arrest is made — must be given substance in the magistrate’s office and the police thana

By dissolving the false dichotomy between “detention” and “arrest”, the Court has gone a step further in championing liberty.

3 min read Nov 10, 2026 06:12 AM IST First published on: Nov 10, 2026 at 06:12 AM IST

On November 5, the Supreme Court (SC) reaffirmed a fundamental principle of natural justice that is also a feature of India’s constitutional scheme. While overturning the denial of bail by the Tripura High Court in a Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act case, a bench comprising Justices Ujjal Bhuyan and A S Chandurkar held that “There is no such thing called temporary disruption of liberty”. Any person detained by the state must be produced before a magistrate within 24 hours.…