WARRANT OF ARREST

Criminal Procedure Code, 1974 the “WARRANT OF ARREST” lays down from Section 70 to Section 81-

INTRODUCTION-

An arrest warrant is a document issued by a judge or magistrate that authorizes the police to take someone accused of a crime into custody.

“A warrant authorizing and commanding the arrest of a specific thing or person designated by name or by description”.

____Merriam Webster

The question rises here is..,

Can police arrest any individual at any time? (Or) Do police need a warrant to arrest any person?

Yes, it is needed to know the legal rights of every person in the society, so these rights benefit every individual to fight against the unwanted troubles. Therefore for better understanding, what warrant generally means? In general terms, Warrant is an order of a court or magistrate to arrest a person of an offence and if we through the dictionary meaning the warrant is defined as, “a document issued by a legal or government official authorizing the police or another body to make an arrest, search premises, or carry out some other action relating to the administration of justice”.

CHAPTER IV of Criminal Procedure Code deals with process compel appearance. Following are three modes of compelling appearance.

Summons.
The arrest of warrant.
Proclamation for person absconding.

Section 70 of CrPC provides WARRANT OF ARREST and DURATION-

1. Every warrant of arrest issued by a court under this code shall be in writing, signed by the presiding officer of such court and shall bear the seal of the court.

2. Every such warrant shall remain in force until it is cancelled by the court which issued it, or until it is executed.

Section 71- Power to direct security to be taken;

It provides that any court issuing a warrant for the arrest of any person in its discretion direct by endorsement on the warrant that, if such person pays the sufficient sum of money as a security then it may release the accused. The endorsement shall states:

a) The number of securities;

b) The amount in which they and the person for whose arrest the warrant is

issued, are respectively bound; and

c) The time at which he is to attend before court.

Whenever security is taken under this section, the officer to whom the warrant directed shall forward the bond the court.

Section 72- warrants to whom directed;

A warrant of arrest shall ordinarily be directed to one or more police officers.

Section 73 warrant may be directed to any person

According to section 74 of the Criminal Procedure Code, a warrant directed to any police officer can also be executed by any other police officer whose name is endorsed upon by the police officer directed or endorsed.

Section 75 notification of substance of warrant

When a police officer or other authorized individual is executing an arrest warrant, they are required to inform the person being arrested about the details of the warrant.

Section 76 person arrested to be brought before the court without delay

A police officer or other person executing an arrest warrant shall present the arrested person without undue delay to the court where he is obliged by law to present such person.

Section 77 A warrant of arrest may be executed at any place of India.

Section 78 warrant forwarded for execution outside jurisdiction.

Section 79 warrant directed to police officer for execution outside jurisdiction.

Section 80 procedure of arrest of person against whom warrant issued.

Section 81 procedure by magistrate before whom such person arrested is brought.

THE Orissa High Court recently, 2023 While quashing the NBW it clarified that a court cannot simply issue an NBW without carefully considering the entirely of the facts and circumstances. The court must be satisfied that the accused is intentionally avoiding the court proceedings. This decision was made when three individuals faced non-bailable warrants in a cheque bounce case. Justice Savitri Ratho emphasized that due to its severe impact on personal liberty, NBWs should not be issued without thoughtful consideration.

CONCLUSION

However, it’s important to understand that the decision to quash a warrant is determined individually for each case, taking into account the specific facts and circumstances. When someone wants to cancel a warrant, they usually file a writ petition such as habeas corpus or certiorari in the appropriate court to challenge its validity. After careful examination of the case’s merits, the court will make a decision.

AUTHOR:- SHAHEEN MOGHAL, JAGRLAMUDI CHANDRAMOULI COLLEGE OF LAW, GUNTUR, ANDHRA PRADESH.