Bombay High Court has given a strong verdict to ED in a case. During the hearing of a case, the High Court said that the right to sleep is a basic human need and not giving it is a violation of the human rights of any person. A bench of Justices Revati Mohite-Dere and Manjusha Deshpande directed the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to give “worldly time” to record statements whenever the agency issues summons to anyone under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). “Instructions for maintenance should be issued.
Court heard the petition
The high court was hearing a petition filed by 64-year-old Gandhidham resident Ram Kotumal Israni seeking to declare his arrest illegal. Advocate Vijay Aggarwal, Ayush Jindal and Yash Vardhan Tiwari told the court that on August 7, 2023, Issrani joined the investigation at 10.30 am in Delhi and his personal liberty was compromised, his mobile phone was confiscated, and he was ED officials surrounded and chased them till the washroom.
Aggarwal further told the court that Israni was interrogated throughout the night, which violated his ‘right to sleep’, which is part of his right to life guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution. ED recorded Israni’s statement from 10.30 pm to 3 am, depriving him of the right to sleep. Aggarwal said that Israni had medical problems and hence the ED should not have been in any hurry to record her statement after midnight and she could have been called on the next date or even a few days after that. Israni was formally arrested by the ED at 5.30 am on August 8, 2023.
‘Lack of sleep affects human health’
Advocates Hiten Venegaonkar and Ayush Kedia, appearing for the agency, said Issrani had no objection to the late recording of his statement and hence, it was recorded. “Recording the statement at mundane time definitely deprives a person of his sleep, which is a basic human right of a human being. We cannot accept this practice,” the bench said. Lack of sleep affects a person’s health, it can spoil his mental status, working skills etc.
The right to sleep cannot be denied
The High Court said, “Ram Kotumal Israni cannot be deprived of his basic human right, i.e. the right to sleep, by the agency beyond a reasonable time. The statement should be recorded at the right time as per the need and not at night. When a person’s working skills start deteriorating.” The court rejected Advocate Aggarwal’s argument that Israni’s arrest was illegal.
‘Could have been called the next day also’
The Court said that when a person is called for questioning, the investigating agency is not able to reach a decision whether the said person is guilty of any crime or not. The petitioner, aged 64 years, had earlier appeared before the agency to record his statement. The court said that Issrani could have been called on any other day or even the next day instead of being made to wait after midnight despite his alleged consent. The bench has fixed September 9 for compliance in the matter.
read this also:
High Court acquitted the man in POCSO Act case, said – ‘Wrongful punishment is much worse’
Latest India News