A detenu has a fundamental right under Article 22(5) that the grounds on which a detention order has been made against him, be communicated to him as soon as may be and in a language which the detenue understands in a language which the detenue understands: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court on Friday laid down the legal position regarding the detaining authority\’s obligation to communicate to a detenu the grounds of detention.

A division bench comprising of Justice Siddharth Mridul and Justice Anup J Bhambhani observed the following:

– A detenu has a fundamental right under Article 22(5) that the grounds on which a detention order has been made against him, be communicated to him as soon as may be; and that he be afforded an opportunity of making a representation against the detention order at the earliest.

Communicating the grounds of detention effectively and fully to a detenu implies that the grounds must be furnished to him in a language which the detenu understands; and if that entails translation of the grounds to such language, then that is part of the Constitutional mandate.

Judgment: JASVINDER KAUR v. UNION OF INDIA and MINISTRY OF FINANCE DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE AND ORS.

Source: www.livelaw.in