The Supreme Court has imposed a ₹10 lakh fine on the Uttar Pradesh Government, holding that any preventive detention cannot be based on alleged confessions obtained in police custody. Justice Dipankar Datta and Sheel Nagu pronounced the judgment while rejecting an appeal filed by Mulla Afroz, who is accused in the Sambhal Violence Case of 2024.
Challenge to police custody confessions and NSA provision
Mulla Afroz was arrested under Section 3(2) of the National Security Act (NSA) in October 2025 due to the violent clash during the Sambhal Shahi Jama Masjid Survey, where four people were killed. The Uttar Pradesh state officials justified the preventive arrest on grounds that his acts posed a threat to public order and hence required stringent measures to be taken to maintain peace.
The Supreme Court raised doubt over the legality of the very justification being provided by the state in relation to the invocation of preventive detention on grounds of statements given by a person in police custody. Afroz filed a special leave petition challenging the rejection of his bail petition filed in June 2026 by the Allahabad High Court in support of the subjectivity of the District Magistrate in making such orders.
Verdict follows reserved judgment
The apex court concluded proceedings and reserved its judgment on September 8 before issuing the final ruling and financial penalty against the state administration. The ruling sets a strict legal precedent regarding the limits of preventive detention and the inadmissibility of custody-based confessions for restricting personal liberty.
