Magistrate May Refuse Remand Of Accused If Detention Exceeded Reasonable Period Within 24-Hour Timeframe : Supreme Court

The Supreme Court has held that a Judicial Magistrate must examine whether the period of detention of an accused was reasonable, even if the accused is produced before the Magistrate within the constitutionally mandated 24-hour period from arrest. If the Magistrate finds that the detention exceeded what was reasonable in the circumstances of the case, the Magistrate may decline remand.

“The Magistrate shall also examine at the time of production whether the detention of the person produced, though within the time frame of 24 hours, has exceeded the period which can be construed to be reasonable in the circumstances of the case. If he is satisfied that the detention in custody has been for a longer period than what is reasonable, he may decline remand,” the Court observed.

In a significant judgment, a bench comprising Justice Ujjal Bhuyan and Justice Atul S Chandurkar held that the constitutional safeguard under Article 22(2), which mandates production of an arrested and detained person before the nearest Magistrate within 24 hours, begins from the moment the person's liberty is effectively curtailed and not from the time of formal arrest.

The bench observed that Article 22(2) uses the expressions “arrested and detained” conjunctively, and therefore, the two concepts must be read together. A buffer zone between arrest and detention cannot be artificially created.

The Court further clarified that the detaining authority must ensure that detention does not exceed a reasonable period even within the outer limit of 24 hours, as mandated under Section 58 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS).

“The detaining authority should keep in mind not only the 24-hour deadline mandated by Article 22(2) but also ensure that such detention should not extend beyond the reasonable period within the 24-hour period considering the circumstances of the case in terms of Section 58 of BNSS,” the Court stated.

The bench emphasised that when an accused is produced before a Magistrate, the Magistrate is duty-bound to record the actual date and time of detention and ascertain whether the mandate of Section 58 BNSS has been complied with. The Magistrate must also independently examine whether the duration of detention was reasonable in the circumstances of the case.

The Court explained that Section 57 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (corresponding to Section 58 BNSS), prescribes two distinct limitations: the constitutional ceiling of 24 hours and the requirement that detention within that period must not exceed what is reasonable in the circumstances of the case.

“Therefore, Section 57 CrPC (58 BNSS) mandates two limitations: firstly, the constitutional limitation of 24 hours; and secondly, within that 24 hours, the detention should not exceed what is considered to be a reasonable period in the facts of that case. This additional but salutary limitation should be borne in mind not only by the detaining authorities but also by the magistrates considering remand,” the Court observed.

The bench added that even if there is technically no violation of the 24-hour deadline, the Magistrate may decline remand if satisfied that the detention was longer than what was reasonable. It stressed that consideration of remand cannot be a mechanical exercise.

Senior Advocate Rauf Rahim, assisted by Advocate Ali Asghar Rahim, appeared for the appellants.