Arrest & Preventive Detention — Article 22 — KSLU Constitutional Law Notes
Arrest & Preventive Detention — Article 22
Liberty’s most vulnerable moment is the arrest. Article 22 guards it — and fences the darker power of preventive detention (locking a person up for what he might do).
| Ordinary (punitive) arrest — 22(1)–(2) | Preventive detention — 22(4)–(7) |
|---|---|
| Right to be informed of grounds | Detention to prevent a future threat |
| Right to consult a lawyer of choice | Grounds to be communicated (with a chance to represent) |
| Produced before a magistrate within 24 hours | Advisory Board review for detention beyond 3 months |
| (Does not apply to enemy aliens or preventive detainees) | Max period and grounds set by law |
Cases: A.K. Gopalan (1950, narrow, self-contained-code view) → Maneka Gandhi (1978), after which preventive detention is also tested against Art. 21’s “just, fair and reasonable” standard; D.K. Basu v. State of West Bengal (1997) laid down binding arrest and custody guidelines.