Abdul Karim Vs Union of India And Ors. (Bombay High Court)
GST Arrest Not Illegal Where Reasons for Arrest Were Digitally Signed, Rules Bombay HC; Bombay HC Rejects Plea Against GST Arrest Due to Compliance With BNSS Procedures; Challenge to GST Arrest Fails Because Grounds of Arrest Were Properly Communicated; Non-Speaking Remand Order Argument Rejected in GST Arrest Case by Bombay HC; Bombay HC Says Judicial Review in GST Arrest Cases Limited to Safeguard Compliance.
The Bombay High Court dismissed a writ petition challenging the legality of the petitioner’s arrest in a case registered by the Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI), Kolhapur Regional Unit, under the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017. The petitioner had sought declaration of the arrest as illegal, quashing of the remand order dated 05.12.2025 passed by the Judicial Magistrate First Class, Kolhapur, immediate release from custody, and compensation for alleged violation of fundamental rights under Articles 21 and 22 of the Constitution of India.
The petitioner contended that the arrest was illegal on several grounds, including that the “reasons to believe” order was not signed by the competent authority, there was non-compliance with Sections 35(3) and 36(1)(b) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS), the arrest was not informed to family members, the arrest memo was signed by a friend instead of a family member, the grounds of arrest were not properly supplied, and the petitioner was denied an opportunity to consult a lawyer of his choice. It was also argued that the Magistrate had passed a non-speaking remand order authorizing judicial custody.
