Police do not have an unlimited power to arrest merely because someone has been accused of a cognizable offence. The amended section 54 sets different requirements according to the seriousness of the alleged offence and, for many offences punishable with imprisonment of up to seven years, requires a separate assessment of why arrest is necessary.
The arresting officer must also comply with the new procedures in sections 46A to 46E, communicate the grounds of arrest under section 54A and document the arrest in the official registers.
Constitutional protection
Article 31 of the Constitution requires every person within Bangladesh and every citizen wherever located to be treated in accordance with law. Article 32 protects every person from deprivation of life or personal liberty except in accordance with law.
Article 33 provides that an arrested person must be informed of the grounds of arrest as soon as possible and must not be denied the right to consult and be defended by a legal practitioner of choice. Subject to the constitutional exceptions, the person must be produced before the nearest Magistrate within twenty-four hours, excluding necessary journey time, and cannot be detained beyond that period without a Magistrate’s authority.
Arrest where an offence occurs in the officer’s presence
Under the substituted section 54, police may arrest without warrant a person who commits a cognizable offence in the presence of a police officer.
The officer must still follow the statutory arrest procedure, including identification, arrest memorandum, communication of grounds and custody records.
Offences punishable with up to seven years
Where a reasonable complaint, credible information or reasonable suspicion concerns a cognizable offence punishable with imprisonment up to seven years, the officer must first have reason to believe that the person committed the offence.
The officer must also be satisfied that arrest is necessary for at least one of the purposes listed in section 54. These include preventing further offence, conducting a proper investigation, preventing disappearance or tampering with evidence, preventing threats or inducements to persons acquainted with the facts, or ensuring the accused person’s presence before the court.
The officer must record the reasons for making the arrest. Where arrest is not required, the officer must also record the reasons for not arresting.
This is a major safeguard. It separates the existence of an allegation from the necessity of immediate custody.
Offences punishable with more than seven years or death
For a cognizable offence punishable with imprisonment exceeding seven years, imprisonment for life or death, section 54 permits arrest where credible information has been received and the officer has reason to believe that the person committed the offence.
The statutory threshold remains more than mere personal suspicion. The officer must be able to connect the arrest to credible information and a reasoned belief.
Other statutory grounds
Section 54 also retains additional grounds, including circumstances involving proclaimed offenders, suspected possession of stolen property, obstruction of police duty, escape from lawful custody and specified requisitions from another police officer.
Each ground has its own conditions. The phrase “section 54 arrest” should not be used as if there were only one general power.
The amended section also states that a person may not be arrested under section 54 merely for the purpose of detaining that person under preventive-detention law.
The arresting officer’s duties
Section 46A requires the arresting officer to display clear identification of name and identity, disclose identity and show official identification if demanded.
The officer must prepare a memorandum of arrest containing the prescribed particulars. It should be witnessed by a family member or a respectable local inhabitant, where available, and countersigned or marked by the arrested person. The prescribed form records matters including the exact time and place, legal grounds, physical condition, injuries, notification of relatives and identity of the arresting officer.
Where the arrest occurs away from the person’s residence, police must inform a nominated relative, friend or other person as soon as practicable and no later than twenty-four hours. The information should include the time and place of arrest and location of custody.
The person must be allowed to consult a lawyer of choice or meet the nearest relative, preferably within twelve hours, subject to the statutory wording. Any visible injury must be recorded, and medical examination or treatment must be arranged where required.
Communication of the grounds
Section 54A requires a police officer making an arrest without warrant to communicate the full particulars of the offence or other grounds for arrest.
A vague statement such as “higher authority ordered it” is not a legal substitute for communicating the statutory basis.
The arrested person should not be required to sign a document that inaccurately records the time, location or physical condition. Any objection should be raised calmly before the Magistrate and through counsel.
Judicial examination of compliance
Section 67A requires the Magistrate or court before whom the arrested person is produced to examine whether the arrest provisions were complied with. Where non-compliance resulted from negligence or misconduct, the court may direct the competent authority to take service action, with reasons recorded.
This makes the first production before the Magistrate a substantive safeguard rather than a routine forwarding exercise.
The BLAST judgment
In Bangladesh and others v Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust and others, the Appellate Division addressed abuse of arrest and remand powers under sections 54 and 167. The Court required arrest records, notification of relatives, access to counsel, medical safeguards and careful judicial scrutiny of requests for custody.
Many of those safeguards were later incorporated into the Code through the 2026 amendment. Where an older judicial direction and the current statutory text use different details, the present statute must be read first, while the judgment remains important for constitutional interpretation and accountability.
Non-resident Bangladeshis
A non-resident named in a criminal case should not assume that remaining abroad resolves the risk of arrest. Before travelling, the person should obtain the FIR or complaint, case number, alleged sections, current order sheet and information about any warrant or proclamation.
An advocate should determine whether regular bail, anticipatory bail or another remedy is legally appropriate. A foreign residence permit, employment record and confirmed address may be relevant to the risk of absconding, but they do not create immunity from arrest.
Common mistakes
Common mistakes include believing that every FIR requires arrest, believing that a cognizable classification removes all statutory safeguards and signing an inaccurate arrest memorandum without objection.
Another error is relying only on the pre-2026 wording of section 54 or older summaries of the BLAST directions.
Law updated as of 13 July 2026.
Primary sources: Constitution of Bangladesh, Articles 31, 32, 33 and 35; Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898, sections 46A to 46E, 54, 54A and 67A; Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Act, 2026; Bangladesh and others v Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust and others, Civil Appeal No. 53 of 2004, decided 24 May 2016.
Legal-information disclaimer: This article provides general legal information, not legal advice. Arrest powers and available remedies depend on the offence, evidence, court orders and procedural stage. Obtain urgent advice from a licensed criminal-law advocate where arrest is threatened.