Under the Constitution of India, what constitutes illegal detention?

The deprivation of liberty by the State without lawful authority or in violation of provisions of the Constitution. It involves actual custody such that the individual is not free to leave, and the detention lacks a valid legal basis — a lack of authorisation, or an authority that is void or expired. Even where a law permits detention, it becomes illegal if the procedure followed is not just, fair, and reasonable, including a failure to observe essential safeguards, or where the power to detain is exercised arbitrarily, for an improper purpose, or in bad faith.

Constitution of India — Art.21 — Art.32 — Art.226 — Rajasthan Prisoners Release on Parole Rules, 1958 — r.9 — Illegal detention — Habeas corpus — Compensation as a public law remedy — Constitution of India — Art.21 — Illegal detention — Meaning — Held: The deprivation of liberty by the State without lawful authority or in violation of provisions of the Constitution is illegal detention. Even where a law permits detention, it becomes illegal if the procedure followed is not just, fair, and reasonable. (¶7) Constitution of India — Art.226 — Habeas corpus — Non-release after parole granted — Held further: Habeas corpus is available in all cases of wrongful deprivation of personal liberty and is maintainable against any form of detention. Once parole has been granted and sureties produced to the satisfaction of the concerned court, the non-release becomes illegal detention. (¶11) Rajasthan Prisoners Release on Parole Rules, 1958 — r.9 — Release order — Obey first, appeal later — Held further: A judicial order remains in operation unless stayed, modified, or set aside, and the mere filing of an appeal does not keep it in abeyance. A State that never challenged the release order cannot question its legality at a belated stage. (¶9) Constitution of India — Art.21 — Compensation — Recognised public law remedy — Held further: Payment of compensation is an acceptable and recognised public law remedy, and the liberty of an individual cannot be placed sub-par to the State's bureaucratic processes of deciding whether to file an appeal. Rs.11,00,000/- awarded for twenty-four days of illegal custody; appeal allowed. (¶12)

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