Hyderabad: Prominent civil and human rights advocates severely condemned the illegal arrest of Deccan Chronicle Holdings Limited chairman T. Venkatram Reddy and vice-chairman and managing director T. Vinayak Ravi Reddy by the CBI on Saturday.
Describing the arrest as a mischievous act, senior advocate and noted civil and human rights activist Bojja Tarakam said that keeping in view the highhanded behaviour of law-enforcing agencies, the Supreme Court had made several changes to the Criminal Procedure Code to safeguard the rights that are guaranteed under the Constitution.
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Mr Tarakam said as the DCHL chairman and the vice chairman were cooperating with the CBI in the investigation of the case, they should not have been arrested. “I strongly believe that there might be some pressure on the CBI as the investigation officer had never made an effort to arrest them when they had appeared before him on several occasions, as there may not be evidence to prove the charges.
Due to pressure from outside forces, the CBI might have cooked up false evidence and whisked them away from their office when they were in the city for a family wedding,” he said.
He said based on the guidelines issued by the Supreme Court in D.K. Basu vs Union of India, the Criminal Procedure Code had been amended and safeguards put in place in 2010. Mr Tarakam said that the CBI personnel carrying out the arrest and handling the interrogation should bear accurate, visible and clear identification and name tags with their designations. The particulars of all such police personnel who handle interrogation must be recorded in a register.
The arrest has to be attested by at least one witness, who is a family member of the person arrested, or a respectable member of the locality where the arrest is made, he added. However, in this case, the CBI officials seemed not to have followed the guidelines as the officials who took the DCHL chairman and the vice-chairman from the office, prepared the documents at the CBI office later, before producing them in court, Mr Tarakam added.
He said it was a clear-cut violation of law and the Supreme Court order, and liable for punishment. Mr V. Raghunath, joint secretary of the Civil Liberties Committee, said that law-enforcing agencies, either the CBI or the police, are governed by criminal law and they are bound to follow the guidelines of the Supreme Court in the D.K. Basu case and also the Criminal Procedure Code.
He said the CBI officials committed contempt in arresting the DCHL chairman and the vice-chairman and demanded their unconditional release and also action against the officers who illegally arrested them. Mr T. Sri Rangarao, leader of the Telangana Advocates Joint Action Committee, said that without giving notice under Section 41 CrPC, the police cannot arrest anyone in cases where the maximum punishment is up to seven years. Any arrest made in violation to the procedure contemplated under the CrPC is to be treated as an illegal arrest, he added.
Mr Saikrishna Azad, another civil rights advocate of the High Court said that he would approach the Human Rights Commission against the illegal act of the CBI.
Mr D. Suresh Kumar, vice-president of the Andhra Pradesh Civil Liberties Committee, said that the CBI action was arbitrary and violated the fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution.
He demanded action against the CBI officers for not complying with the requirements of the CrPC and the Supreme Court order while arresting the Deccan Chronicle Holdings Limited chairman and vice-chairman. They were liable for departmental action as per the CrPC and also liable for punishment for contempt of court, he said.
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CBI SHOULD FOLLOW RULES
It’s strange that the CBI arrested DCHL chairman T. Venkatram Reddy and others as the arrest is illegal and goes against the judgement of the Supreme Court in the Arnesh Kumar vs State of Bihar case (Arrests illegal, DC will fight it out, February 15). It is clear that due procedures were not followed by the CBI while carrying out the arrest. This is a gross misuse of authority carried out to please the CBI’s political masters. The CBI should be made a Constitutional body like the Election Commission and the CAG. - Khaja Aijazuddin, Hyderabad
CBI’S ACTION RIDICULOUS
The CBI’s image has taken another blow with the arrest of DCHL’s top officials. It is a ridiculous action to say the least. Of late the CBI seems to be functioning illegally and this should be condemned by all right thinking persons. Earlier, it was the Congress Bureau of Investigation and now it should be renamed as the BJP Bureau of Investigation. It is high time the Modi government revamps the CBI. If not the government should get ready for another beating like the one witnessed recently in Delhi. - S. Venugopalan, Chennai
MEDIA BEING TARGETED
Of late, the Indian media, both print and electronic, has been facing various charges. The allegation against Deccan Chronicle is not about any malafide reporting, editing or advertising but about alleged financial irregularities. DC has put forward its arguments explaining its innocence but it has to be proved in a court of law. In the present scenario of corrupt and criminalised politics people find hope only in the judiciary and the press. - P.R.V. Raja Pandalam, Kerala
READERS WILL STAND BY DC
It is really sad to learn that Deccan Chronicle Holdings Limited chairman T. Venkatram Reddy and vice-chairman and managing director T. Ravi Vinayak Reddy have been arrested by the CBI in Hyderabad without serving a warrant. The lakhs of DC readers will stand by the newspaper in this hour of crisis. The CBI cannot stop them from reading the paper which has been serving society in an excellent manner. - S. Ramakrishnasayee, Ranipet, Chennai
VIOLATION OF LEGAL NORMS
The illegal arrests of top DCHL officials by CBI sleuths without any warrant or prior notice is totally unacceptable and outrageous. This is as if the high profile men are thieves on the run. The CBI has not followed the fundamental norms normally followed by a cop or SC’s rulings regarding similar situations. This is a blatant violation of all established legal procedures to say the least.
No doubt, the CBI needs autonomy but certainly not autocracy. One is reminded of those dark days of Emergency and the pre-Independence era when indiscriminate arrests were made blindly following the oral instructions of authorities. One wonders how this ignominy could escape public criticism and widespread condemnation.
Before arresting any person, there must be a primafacie case backed by documentary records or at least a government order. In the absence of any such valid reason, the arrest is nothing but high handedness. Are we marching forward as a civilised society or going back to the stone age? One shudders to think of the vulnerability of the have-nots if leading personalities with no criminal antecedents could be so brutally treated. - Kallal M.L. Raghavan, Chennai
UNFORTUNATE INCIDENT
We feel that it is unfortunate that the CBI arrested DCHL directors without giving notice, serving warrants and without following due procedure. The CBI also failed to record reasons for the arrest. This is a violation of the law. - Vikram Raj, Hyderabad
CBI ACTION IS HASTY, CRUDE
The hasty way in which the CBI sleuths arrested the top officials of DCHL does not seem to be in accordance with the law and the procedures laid down in the rule book of the agency. The arrests of top officials of a leading company without following the law is clearly illegal. - N.S. Sharma, Visakhapatnam
NEED BETTER JUDICIARY
It is unfortunate that there is no proper punishment for illegal arrests, detentions and malafide allegations. Even if it is there it is very insignificant. Further the slow procedures of our judiciary and delayed justice adds to the misery. We must have a time bound legal process and stringent punishment for making false allegations. The government must ensure accountability in the judicial process. - Vasudeva Rao, Visakhapatnam
ARREST IS MOTIVATED
The CBI arresting the Chairman and Vice Chairman of Deccan Chronicle Holdings Limited illegally without serving any notice or following due procedure speaks for itself and the motive behind it. Any commoner can understand that the arrests are meant only for humiliating the top personalities of DCHL. Otherwise where is the necessity for the CBI to arrest them at an odd hour like 9 pm on a Sunday denying them the chance to apply for bail immediately. - Col. C.R.S. Reddy (Retd), Hyderabad
