Guwahati: The Supreme Court on Thursday observed that it may refer to a larger bench the legal question of whether a typographical error in an arrest memo, specifically the mention of an incorrect statutory provision, is sufficient to invalidate an arrest and justify granting bail in the murder case involving Sonam Raghuvanshi.
A partial working day bench comprising Justices Manoj Misra and Shree Chandrashekhar also indicated that it would closely examine whether the Meghalaya High Court was justified in granting bail to Raghuvanshi on the basis of the error in the arrest memo.
Appearing for the Meghalaya government, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta argued that the court should determine whether the mere mention of an incorrect statutory section due to a typographical error could render an arrest invalid in what he described as a "shocking" murder case.
Earlier, on 3rd July, a bench of Justices M.M. Sundresh and Sheel Nagu had declined to stay the Meghalaya High Court's order granting bail to Raghuvanshi.
The High Court had upheld the bail order after observing that the police had failed to provide proper written grounds for Raghuvanshi's arrest. It noted a "total non-application of judicial mind" because the arrest memo cited Section 403 instead of Section 103(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which deals with the punishment for murder.
The Supreme Court is now set to examine whether such a clerical or typographical error is sufficient to invalidate an arrest and whether the High Court's interpretation of the law was legally sustainable.