New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday said the country would not be a "civilised society" if the "Damocles sword of arrest" hangs on a citizen constantly, as it prima facie defended its judgment ruling out immediate and mandatory arrest of a person charged under the SC-ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
A bench of Justices A.K. Goel and U.U. Lalit, which briefly heard the Centre’s petition seeking a recall of the March 20 judgment, said even Parliament did not have the power to trample on the personal liberty of a citizen guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution.
"Arrest of a person has to be just and fair. According to Article 21 arrest of a person has be to just and reasonable. The provision has to be read into every statute. Arrest of a person has to be fair and justified. Not even Parliament can allow the arrest of a person without justification, that is the mandate of the court," Justice Goel, heading the bench, told attorney-general K.K. Venugopal.
When the AG tried to defend the Act, Justice Goel said: "If the Damocles sword is hanging on a citizen’s head constantly that he can be arrested then we are not being a civilised society."
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