NEW DELHI, 27 February (H.S.): The Supreme Court of India has ruled that pre-arrest bail is applicable to the Goods and Services Act and the customs law, and that individuals can approach courts for pre-arrest bail even without an FIR. The three-judge bench, led by Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna and Justices MM Sundresh and Bela M Trivedi, confirmed that individuals have the right to approach courts for pre-arrest bail, even in cases where an FIR is not in place.

The court also ruled that the provisions of the criminal procedure code would be applicable in cases under the GST and customs laws. The bench also clarified that it does not approve of enforcement officers using threat and coercion during search and seizure operations under the GST framework and that officers involved in such operations should face departmental proceedings.

The court did not accept the argument that customs officers are police officers and stated that safeguards applicable to arrests under other statutes, including the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), will now apply in cases of arrests under GST and Customs laws. The detailed judgment in the case will be uploaded later in the day.

Hindusthan Samachar / Meenakshi Bhattacharya