Contemporaneous communication of arrest grounds required; unlawful tax arrest led to remand being set aside

Failure to supply the grounds of arrest contemporaneously with the arrest memo rendered the arrest unlawful, as the court treated timely communication as essential to valid arrest and transparent tax administration. The subsequent filing of the grounds with the counter-affidavit bearing a CBIC-DIN did not cure the defect. On that basis, the remand founded on the illegal arrest was also set aside, and the detained person was directed to be released forthwith.

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Issues: Whether the petitioner's arrest and subsequent remand were illegal for want of supply of the grounds of arrest along with the arrest memo, and whether the remand order was liable to be set aside.

Analysis: The Court found that the grounds of arrest were not supplied to the petitioner contemporaneously with the arrest memo and were subsequently brought on record with the counter-affidavit bearing a CBIC-DIN. In view of the governing law on communication of grounds of arrest and the requirement of transparency in tax administration, the arrest and the remand based on it were held to be unlawful.

Conclusion: The arrest and remand were held illegal, and the remand order was set aside. The petitioner was directed to be released forthwith.

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