The Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs (CBIC) on Monday asked its officials to explain the grounds of arrest to the arrested person and obtain an acknowledgement from him. The board has amended its guidelines after a ruling by the Delhi High Court.
“The grounds of arrest must be explained to the arrested person and also furnished to him in writing as an Annexure to the Arrest Memo. Acknowledgement of the same should be taken from the arrested person at the time of service of the Arrest Memo,” the board said in its instruction. Earlier, as per the guideline issued in August 2022, GST officers were required to explain the grounds of arrest to the arrested person, and note the same in the arrest memo.
The High Court, in the matter of Kshitij Ghildiyal versus Director General of GST Intelligence, held that the grounds for arrest had to be communicated in writing to the arrested person. “In this context, it is relevant to note the distinction between ‘reasons for arrest’ and ‘grounds of arrest’ made by the Supreme Court,” the board said.