New Delhi, Nov. 7 -- The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that the grounds of arrest must be furnished in writing to every accused in all cases, including offences under the Indian Penal Code (now the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023), marking a significant expansion of the constitutional safeguard and ending the perception that such protection was limited only to special laws such as the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) or the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

A bench of Chief Justice of India Bhushan R Gavai and justice AG Masih held that the obligation to inform a person why they are being arrested "is not a mere procedural formality but a mandatory constitutional safeguard" flowing from the right to life and personal li...