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CCTV at police stations: HC lays down safeguards when gadget is non-functional
During CCTV non-functionality, entry time, departure time, and interrogation details of every suspect must be recorded in the GD. A signed receipt must be obtained from the person or their next of kin upon release, the court said
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The Allahabad high court has laid down safeguards to be followed by the police when CCTV surveillance is non-functional at a police station. It directed that details of all persons brought for interrogation or arrest must be recorded in the general diary (GD) at the same time.
A division bench comprising justice Atul Sreedharan and justice Achal Sachdev issued these directions in the case of Raghvendra Dubey And Another vs. State Of U.P. And 4 Others.
The court observed, “The facts of this case, prima facie, strongly go to disclose that the police personnel acted as recovery agents on behalf of the complainant.”
Setting aside the arrest of the petitioner due to a “grossly deficient” arrest memo witnessed only by police personnel, the bench ordered the petitioner’s release and awarded ₹10,000 as compensation for 24 hours of illegal detention.
The court said, “Another worrying aspect of this case to which this Court must advert to is the repeated number of cases in which the police are trying to manipulate CCTV cameras within the premises of the police station.”
In the order, dated September 23, the court directed that CCTV systems within police stations must remain operational 24/7 X 365 days.
The court directed that if a system fails, the station house officer (SHO) must make a GD entry recording the exact time of failure and identify the official to whom the failure was reported in writing and the superintendent of police (SP) of the district must be informed to ensure minimal downtime and record repair steps.
“During CCTV non-functionality, entry time, departure time, and interrogation details of every suspect must be recorded in the GD. A signed receipt must be obtained from the person or their next of kin upon release,” added the bench.
According to the petitioner, he was illegally picked up from Asansol and brought to Police Station Sardhuwa in Chitrakoot due to a sand-mining agreement dispute. The State argued that the petitioner was arrested pursuant to non-bailable warrants after the registration of an FIR.
CCTV footage showed the petitioner entering the police station at 9:00 AM on July 13, 2026, leaving at 10:19 AM with the investigating officer in the informant’s vehicle, and returning at 8:24 PM. However, his arrest memo recorded arrest at 3:30 PM, and the GD recorded lock-up entry at 6:41 PM. Interior CCTV footage from three cameras was missing or deleted.
