New Delhi: The Allahabad high court has sharply condemned the Uttar Pradesh Police over a man’s illegal detention, hours before a first information report (FIR) was registered and nearly a day before his formal arrest, and ordered for his immediate release.A devision bench comprising Justices Atul Sreedharan and Achal Sachdev, in an order dated October 7, declared petitioner Deepak’s detention to be unlawful and noted that the UP police appeared to be acting as a “law unto themselves.”Calling for improvements in police training, the bench asked the UP director general of police (DGP) to prepare modules to familiarise officers with proper arrest procedures and individual liberties.The case emerges from a clash between two groups in Noida on August 23, following which Deepak was taken into custody. Although formal records stated that he was arrested shortly after an FIR was filed, the court observed that he had already been in detention before a formal complaint.“Documents appear to have been prepared and executed as a mere formality, replete with errors that raise serious doubts about the legality of the detention and arrest of the petitioner and others. It appears that the police are a law unto themselves,” the bench said, as quoted by TOI.“This case reflects the sordid state of affairs prevailing in the Uttar Pradesh Police. Repeatedly, cases have come before this court in which the strict requirements of law, both procedural and substantive, have not been adhered to in letter and spirit,” it added.Unreliable formal timeline of eventsAs per the sequence of events considered by the court, the Noida police arrested Deepak and four other men at 7.34 pm on August 23. An FIR, based on a written complaint, was then filed at 9.39 pm – two hours after Deepak had been taken into custody.The court questioned the the preparation of the arrest documents and found sufficient preliminary grounds to suspect that a document had been completed after the event, with Deepak allegedly signing a blank sheet that was countersigned by the investigating officer, Anuj Kumar.These concerns, the bench said, cast a doubt on whether the police adhered to mandatory procedures when Deepak was taken into custody.Magistrates and police under scrutinyJustices Sreedharan and Sachdev criticised Noida assistant commissioner of police (ACP) Kamlesh Kant and Kumar over their understanding of the legal procedures under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS).According to TOI, the state defended the police’s actions by saying that tensions following the clash and the need to prevent further escalation drove the police to complete the paperwork after the person was already in custody. The court, however, dismissed this explanation and said maintaining public order could not excuse non-compliance with law.It emphasised that citizen protections during criminal and law procedures were enshrined in article 22(1) of the constitution, providing safeguards against arbitrary arrest.The bench also criticised the judicial magistrate who examined the police papers, for their failure in analysing the documents adequately. It referred to separate instances in which people were allegedly kept in police stations for more than 24 hours before being released and warned that a lack of awareness would not be accepted as a justification in further such cases.