Consider the following statements :
1. According to the Constitution of India, the Central Government has a duty to protect States from internal disturbances.
2. The Constitution of India exempts the States from providing legal counsel to a person being held for preventive detention.
3. According the Prevention of Terrorism Act, 2002, confession of the accused before the police cannot be used as evidence.
How many of the above statement are correct?
Only one
Only two
All three
None
Answer is Wrong!
Answer is Right!
This question was previously asked in
UPSC IAS – 2023
Statement 2 is correct. Article 22(1) guarantees the right to consult and be defended by a legal practitioner of one’s choice. However, Article 22(3)(b) states that this right does not apply to a person arrested or detained under any law providing for preventive detention. Thus, the Constitution itself exempts the State from the obligation under Article 22(1) to provide legal counsel in cases of preventive detention. While other provisions or laws (like free legal aid under Article 39A) might apply, the constitutional right under Article 22(1) is specifically not available.
Statement 3 is incorrect. The Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA), 2002, contained a controversial provision (Section 32) which allowed confessions made by an accused person before a police officer of the rank of Superintendent of Police or higher to be admissible in evidence, unlike the general rule under the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 which makes confessions before police officers inadmissible. POTA was repealed in 2004.