The Supreme Court of India on Thursday delivered a landmark judgment clarifying and strengthening the constitutional rights of an arrested person, holding that the “grounds of arrest” must be communicated in writing in all cases, including those under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) or the preceding Indian Penal Code (IPC).

A bench comprising Chief Justice of India B.R. Gavai and Justice Augustine George Masih settled a significant question of law. The Court ruled that while exigencies might prevent grounds from being served at the moment of arrest, they must be supplied in writing at least two hours before the arrestee is produced for remand.

The Court was deciding a batch of appeals, with Mihir Rajesh Shah v. State of Maharashtra (Criminal Appeal No. 2195 of 2025) taken as the le

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