Kumar Manish (Corpus) Vs Union of India and 2 others (Allahabad High Court)
The Allahabad High Court dismissed a habeas corpus writ petition filed by Kumar Manish challenging his arrest, remand and continued judicial custody in proceedings under Sections 132(1)(a), 132(1)(f), 132(1)(i) and 132(1)(l) of the CGST Act, 2017. The petitioner sought a declaration that his arrest and detention were illegal and arbitrary and requested release from judicial custody. The arrest followed his appearance before the DGGI Ghaziabad Regional Unit on 16.04.2026. The Arrest Memo recorded his arrest at 01:50 A.M. on 17.04.2026, following which he was produced before the Special Chief Judicial Magistrate, Meerut, and remanded to District Jail, Meerut.
The petitioner submitted that the Grounds of Arrest and Arrest Memo were not supplied to him, that procedural requirements under Section 69 of the CGST Act and the BNSS were not followed, and that the Arrest Memo and Jama Talasi contained discrepancies. He also challenged the recording of his statements under Section 70 of the CGST Act, claimed that the statements were obtained under coercion, and contended that the maximum punishment was five years and that a notice under Section 74 should have preceded arrest. He further relied on Circular No. 02 of 2022-2023 dated 17.08.2022, which states that arrest should not be routine or mechanical and requires consideration of factors including credible information, necessity for investigation and the possibility of tampering with evidence or influencing witnesses.
