Grounds Of Arrest Need Not Specify Quantity Of Contraband For Accused From Whom No Seizure Is Made: Kerala High Court

The Kerala High Court has held that while communication of the grounds of arrest is a mandatory constitutional and statutory requirement, the specification of the quantity of contraband seized is necessary only in respect of those accused from whose possession the contraband was recovered.Dr. Justice Kauser Edappagath delivered the judgement in a bail application arising out of crime registered under Sections 22(c), 27A and 29 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (NDPS Act).The prosecution alleged that 221.89 grams of MDMA was seized from Room No.208 of a hotel at Kunnamangalam on January 21, 2025. The applicant, arrayed as Accused No.1, was arrested on May 20, 2025, and has remained in judicial custody since then. While no contraband was recovered from his physical possession, the prosecution alleged that he had supplied the contraband to other accused persons from Bengaluru.The petitioner contended that he was not properly informed of the grounds of arrest as mandated by Article 22(1) of the Constitution and Section 47 of the BNSS, and that the arrest notice failed to specify the quantity of contraband involved.The Court examined Article 22 (1) of the Constitution of India, and Section 47 of the BNSS, 2023, which mandates that an arrested person must be informed of the grounds of arrest. The Court reaffirmed that this requirement is not a mere procedural formality but a mandatory constitutional safeguard, non-compliance with which would violate Articles 21 and 22(1).Reliance was placed on Mihir Rajesh Shah v. State of Maharashtra [2025 SCC OnLine SC 2356], where a three-Judge Bench has held that grounds of arrest must be communicated in writing, in a language understood by the arrested person, without exception.The applicant relied on prior Kerala High Court decisions including Yazin S. v State of Kerala [2025 KHC OnLine 2383], Rayees R.M., and Vishnu N.P.[2025 KHC 2086], which held that in NDPS cases, effective communication of grounds of arrest requires specification of the quantity of contraband seized.The Court acknowledged this line of authority but confined its applicability and held that the requirement to specify the quantity of contraband seized is relevant and mandatory only in respect of those accused from whose possession the contraband was actually recovered, as such detail directly informs them of the precise nature and gravity of the accusation.“The ruling in Yazin (supra), Rayees (supra), and Vishnu (supra) that, in crimes registered under the NDPS Act, communication of the quantity of the contraband seized is mandatory, cannot be interpreted to mean that it applies to all accused regardless of their complicity in the crime. The specification of the quantity of contraband seized needs to be communicated only to those accused from whose possession the contraband was seized.” the Court held. The Court held that for the accused, from whom no contraband was seized, but are otherwise involved in the crime, communication of the grounds of arrest are sufficient. The Court noted that in the present case, the role of the applicant was detailed in the notice issued and hence there was satisfactory compliance with Section 47 of the BNSS. With these observations, the bail application was dismissed. Case Title: Imran @ Hamsath Ikthiyar @ Irshad v State of Kerala and Ors. Case No: Bail. Appl. 12599/ 2025Citation: 2026 LiveLaw (Ker) 93Counsel for Petitioner: P Mohamed Sabah, Libin Stanley, Saipooje, Sadik Ismayil, R Gayathri, M Mahin Hamza, Alwin Joseph, Benson AmbroseCounsel for Respondents: K A Noushad (Sr. PP)Click Here To Read/ Download Judgment

Grounds Of Arrest Need Not Specify Quantity Of Contraband For Accused From Whom No Seizure Is Made: Kerala High Court

Anamika MJ

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