A GST or Customs officer cannot arrest you on a whim. After the Supreme Court judgment in Radhika Agarwal v. Union of India, decided on 27 February 2025, an officer may arrest you only when there are recorded “reasons to believe” you committed a specified serious offence. The officer must also give you the grounds of arrest in writing before you are produced before a Magistrate. This protection flows from Article 22 of the Constitution. If these steps are skipped, your arrest can be challenged as illegal.
Keep this checklist in mind. These are the safeguards the Supreme Court has now made binding on GST officers under Section 69 of the CGST Act 2017 and Customs officers under Section 104 of the Customs Act 1962.
The case was a group of nearly 280 petitions challenging arrest powers under the GST and Customs laws. A bench led by Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna delivered the judgment, reported as 2025 INSC 272.
The Court did not strike down the power to arrest. It held that Parliament was within its power to create these offences. But it built a strong fence around the power so it is not misused.
The main holdings are simple to state.
Not every GST dispute leads to arrest. The money involved decides how serious the offence is.
| Tax amount involved | How the law treats it | What it means for arrest |
| Below Rs 2 crore | Generally no arrest power | An officer should not arrest you |
| Rs 2 crore to Rs 5 crore | Offence is bailable and non-cognizable | A warrant is normally needed |
| Above Rs 5 crore | Offence is cognizable and non-bailable | Arrest without warrant is possible |
These tiers come from Section 132 of the CGST Act. Customs has its own list of arrestable offences under Section 104. The key point is that an officer must still record written reasons and follow every safeguard, whatever the amount.
Stay calm and act in order. Do not sign blank papers or admit to figures you have not checked.
Bail depends on how the offence is graded.
If the offence is below the Rs 5 crore line, it is treated as bailable. Bail is your right and the officer or court should release you on furnishing bail.
If the offence is above Rs 5 crore, it is non-bailable. This does not mean bail is impossible. It means bail is at the discretion of the court. Your lawyer can apply for regular bail before the Magistrate or Sessions Court. If you fear arrest but have not yet been arrested, your lawyer can seek anticipatory bail under the law.
Because Radhika Agarwal makes the written safeguards mandatory, a failure to follow them is a strong ground in a bail plea. Some High Courts have already granted bail where the officer skipped the written grounds of arrest.
The Right to Information Act 2005 can help you gather your own case papers. You can file an RTI with the GST or Customs department asking for documents that concern you, such as the recorded reasons to believe, the arrest memo and the grounds of arrest, where these are not exempt.
These records can support a bail plea or a challenge to an illegal arrest. You can prepare a clean application using the AI RTI Drafter. If the department does not reply or refuses without good reason, you can escalate with the First Appeal Builder. To understand the full process, read The RTI Playbook and the RTI Act 2005.
Dr. Shrawan Kumar Pathak runs a trading firm in Kanpur. One morning, GST officers arrived and arrested him over an input tax credit dispute. They told him to pay Rs 90 lakh on the spot or stay in custody.
He stayed calm. He asked for the grounds of arrest in writing and noted that the officers had not handed him any written grounds. He called his lawyer, who pointed to the Radhika Agarwal judgment.
When he was produced before the Magistrate, his lawyer argued that the arrest broke the mandatory safeguards because no written grounds were given. The court took this seriously and granted him bail. He later filed an RTI for the recorded reasons to believe, which strengthened his challenge to the arrest. He did not pay the demanded amount under threat.
This example is illustrative, but it shows how the safeguards work in practice.
Only for the most serious offences, where the tax involved is above Rs 5 crore and the offence is cognizable. Even then the officer must record written reasons to believe and give you written grounds of arrest.
It is a Supreme Court judgment of 27 February 2025, reported as 2025 INSC 272. It upheld the power to arrest under GST and Customs laws but made strong written safeguards mandatory to prevent misuse.
Yes. The Supreme Court held that the grounds of arrest must be furnished to you in writing before you are produced before a Magistrate. This flows from Article 22 of the Constitution.
Yes, under Section 104 of the Customs Act 1962, but only for the arrestable offences the law lists. The officer must follow the same written safeguards as a GST officer.
No. The Supreme Court said clearly that arrest cannot be used to coerce or recover tax. If you are forced to pay, you can approach the courts for a refund and the officer can face action.
Yes. If the offence is below Rs 5 crore it is bailable. Above Rs 5 crore it is non-bailable, which means bail is at the court's discretion. Your lawyer can apply for regular or anticipatory bail.
The Court said safeguards from the old Criminal Procedure Code apply, including Sections 41B, 41D, 50A and 55A. These cover arrest memos, access to a lawyer, informing your family and care for your health in custody.
Yes. You can file an RTI with the GST or Customs department for records that concern you, where they are not exempt. These can help your bail plea or a challenge to the arrest.