Staff Reporter
GUWAHATI: A forest range officer, Sibasish Sandilya, who was arrested red-handed while accepting a Rs 12,000 bribe on May 1, 2026, was granted bail by the Gauhati High Court due to an error on the part of the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption of the Assam Police.
Despite his arrest under the Prevention of Corruption Act, the range officer getting bail due to lapses on the part of the police should be an eye-opener on the part of the investigators.
Sibasish Sandilya moved the high court seeking bail. The defence advocate pricked holes in the police records that state that ‘Sandilya was caught red-handed at about 2.45 pm, but the arrest memo shows that he was arrested at 8 pm on that day.’ The single bench of Justice Parthivjyoti Saikia said, ‘This is a clear violation of the guidelines laid down by D.K. Basu (supra). There is also a clear violation of Article 21 of the Constitution of India.”
Since the petitioner has been in custody for the past 32 days, the court believes that “in this case, the period of detention already undergone by the petitioner should also be considered a ground for releasing him on bail.”