High Court issues 7 directives to prevent fake arrest warrants

The High Court has issued seven directives to stop harassment of citizens through producing fake arrest warrants.

A High Court (HC) bench of Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Justice Mohammad Mostafizur Rahman passed the order on Wednesday.

The HC directives are:

• The person preparing the warrant has to fill in the information (including name, designation, and mobile number) by the requirements of Section 75 of the Criminal Procedure Code.
• After preparing the warrant, it should be sent through the messenger to the office of the Superintendent of Police or the concerned police station and signed by the concerned officer/police super of the police station.
• In case of execution of an arrest warrant in a district outside the jurisdiction of the local authority, the issuing authority will seal the arrest warrant and send it to the office of the Superintendent of Police of the concerned district with the seal of the office.
• The officer-in-charge of the office of the concerned Superintendent of Police will open the sealed envelope, check the arrest warrant and ensure its accuracy, and then move for further action.
• To enforce the arrest warrant, the receiving officer should re-examine it before it is executed.
• After the arrest of the accused, the concerned police officer has to present the accused to the nearest magistrate/ judge court within the prescribed time along with the warrant.
• The concerned jail superintendent or any other assigned officer – who receives the accused in jail - shall immediately inform the relevant court about the case detail or warrant detail.  

The HC order came based on a writ petition on a fake arrest warrant made by Md Awlad Hossain, programme officer of the Agriculture Division at Gonoshasthaya Kendra.

Earlier, on 10 December last year, the HC directed the Criminal Investigation Department to determine where the fake warrants were issued and who issued them.

The writ petition was filed last year after Md Awlad Hossain, the Gonoshasthaya Kendra official, was jailed for making fake arrest warrants. 

The secretary of the Department of Public Security, secretary of the Department of Security and Services, secretary of Law, inspector general of police, the registrar general of the Supreme Court, among others, have been asked to implement the order.

The HC also said that a copy of the order should be made available to every Sessions Judge and Metropolitan Sessions Judge, all Tribunals, Special Judge Court Judges, Chief Judicial Magistrates, and Chief Metropolitan Magistrates.

Lawyer Emadul Haque Bashir stood for the petitioner while Deputy Attorney General Md Sarwar Hossain represented the state during the hearing. 

Emadul Haque Bashir said, "Earlier, there were only seals on the warrant. The HC has now asked to issue the seal, designation, and phone number of the warrant maker. It will play an effective role in preventing fake warrants."