Crime and criminals are everywhere on this planet earth and you can say, not a single Country is left where there is no crime or zero crime rates and no criminals. Almost all the countries have laws and regulations to control crime and arrest and punish criminals so do we have in our country and there are certain restrictions and rules for arresting also which should be followed by Police while they arrest a criminal.

Section 46 of the CrPC

Section 46 of the Criminal Procedure Code gives details about the manner in which an arrest should be made.

Section 46 (2) of the Criminal Procedure Code states that if the person being arrested forcibly resists the endeavor to arrest him, or attempts to evade arrest, the person empowered to arrest may use necessary means to effect the arrest. Whether the means were necessary depends on whether a reasonable man, having no intention to cause serious injury to the other, would employ the same means.

Section 46(3) of the Criminal Procedure Code state thus: ‘Nothing in this section gives a right to cause the death of a person who is not accused of an offence punishable with death or with imprisonment for life.’

Reading and understanding the sections together, it would mean that one may cause the death in case the person is merely accused of an offence that is punishable with death or life imprisonment while attempting to effect arrest using necessary means.

Arrest how made

(a) In making an arrest the police officer or other person making the same shall actually touch or confine the body of the person to be arrested, unless there be a submission to the custody by word or action.

(b) If such person forcibly resists the endeavor to arrest him, or attempts to evade the arrest, such police officer or other person may use all means necessary to effect the arrest.

(c) Nothing in this section gives a right to cause the death of a person who is not accused of an offence punishable with death or with imprisonment for life.

(d) Save in exceptional circumstances, no women shall be arrested after sunset and before sunrise, and where such exceptional circumstances exist, the woman police officer shall, by making a written report, obtain the prior permission of the Judicial Magistrate of the first class within whose local jurisdiction the offence is committed or the arrest is to be made.

An interesting fact for arresting women

This Section 46 of Criminal Procedure Code prohibits the arrest of a woman after sunset and before sunrise and if in an emergency or in any kinds of exceptional circumstances arrest is done then it can only be done in the presence of a woman police officer or by her and it should be done by making report, obtain the prior permission of the Judicial Magistrate of the first class within whose local jurisdiction the offence is committed or the arrest is to be made. This provides a safe environment to a woman even if she is a criminal.