Comedian Munawar Faruqui case: What is Section 41 of CrPC and when can police arrest without warrant
The added Section 41A in the Code of Criminal Procedure gives power to a police officer to issue a notice to a person to appear before him. If the person cooperates with the police, there is no need for arrest.
Key Highlights
- The Section 41 grants power to a police officer to arrest a person without an order from a Magistrate and without a warrant.
- A person can be arrested without a warrant if he has committed a cognizable offence.
The stand-up comedian Munawar Faruqui has been granted interim bail by the Supreme Court after spending a month in jail in Madhya Pradesh for allegedly insulting Hindu gods.
The lawyer for Faruqui argued in the court that Madhya Pradesh police did not follow Section 41 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) before arresting the accused.
What exactly is Section 41 of CrPc?
The Section 41 grants power to a police officer to arrest a person without an order from a Magistrate and without a warrant. This power is given for what are called ‘cognizable offences’. Such offences which is seen as serious in nature or require immediate action.
And when can police arrest you without a warrant?
- A person who has committed a cognizable offence, or against whom a reasonable complaint has been made, or credible information has been received.
- A person who is declared a proclaimed offender
- Who has some stolen property in his possession
- A person who is a deserter from the Armed Forces
- A convict who has breached the terms of his parole
- Where a police officer is satisfied that an arrest is necessary to prevent a person from committing any further offence
- And proper investigation of the offence
- To prevent a person from causing the evidence of the offence to disappear or tampering with such evidence
Section 41A was added to the CrPC which gives power to a police officer to issue a notice to an accused to appear before him when a complaint is filed against him. If the accused complies with the notice and cooperates, then the person is not required to be arrested. And this was the section invoked by Faruqui’s lawyer before the Supreme Court while arguing for his bail, And it was very clearly and simply clarified by the Supreme Court nearly seven years ago, in its 2014 Arnesh Kumar vs State of Bihar judgment.
