The Jharkhand High Court came down heavily on senior police officials in Ranchi for willful non-compliance of court orders directing release of a seized vehicle, warning that defiance of judicial directions cannot be justified merely by filing an appeal.
Justice Gautam Kumar Choudhary summoned the City Superintendent of Police, Ranchi and the Officer-in-Charge of Doranda Police Station to appear in person, and also directed the Director General of Police, Jharkhand to join proceedings through video conferencing.
The matter relates to the seizure of a Mercedes car arising out of a minor motor vehicle accident. Despite an order dated 21 February 2026 passed by the Judicial Magistrate First Class-XIII, Ranchi directing release of the vehicle, and a subsequent order of the High Court dated 26 February 2026 reiterating the same, the vehicle continued to remain in police custody.
At the first call of the matter, the petitioner alleged deliberate and intentional disobedience of both trial court and High Court orders. Taking note of the urgency, the Court directed the personal appearance of senior police officials and listed the matter the same day at multiple intervals.
When the State submitted that a Special Leave Petition had been filed before the Supreme Court challenging the High Court’s order dated 26 February 2026, the Bench noted that mere filing of an appeal does not amount to a stay. The Court further recorded that despite the State’s earlier assertion that the matter would be urgently mentioned before the Supreme Court at 1:00 pm, no such relief appeared to have been granted.
Terming the State’s conduct as apparently mala fide, the Court observed that seeking adjournment on the eve of Holi holidays was a ploy to stall compliance with judicial orders. The Bench remarked that the case stemmed from a minor accident in a crowded area where traffic moved at a snail’s pace, with no injuries reported, making continued seizure of the vehicle wholly unjustified.
The Court also took serious exception to the explanation that the vehicle was required for investigation, noting that no stay was operating against the release orders and that refusal to comply was “suggestive of personal vendetta against the petitioner”.
After intervention by Ms. Meenakshi Arora, Senior Advocate, appearing for the State and upon instructions from officers concerned, the City SP and the Officer-in-Charge undertook before the Court to release the vehicle.
Accepting the undertaking, the High Court directed immediate release of the vehicle by 4:30 pm on the same day, subject to the petitioner furnishing an undertaking and bond to produce the vehicle whenever required for investigation and not to tamper with any evidence.
The Court kept the interlocutory application seeking initiation of contempt proceedings pending for the day, while directing that a copy of the order be communicated to the City SP and Senior Superintendent of Police, Ranchi for strict compliance.
Appearances:
For the Petitioner : M/s Ritu Kumar, Rajendra Krishna,; Abhay Kr. Mishra, Siddharth Ranjan; Karamjit Singh Chhabra, Akansha Priya, Piyush Kr. Roy, Amrendra Datri, S.G. Raman, Punam Shrivastava, & Ajay Kr. Singh, Advocates
For the Respondents : Mr. Sachin Kumar, AAG-II; Mr. Achyut Keshav, AAG-V; Mr. Achyut Keshav, AAG-V; Mr. Deepankar, AC to GA-III
For the UOI : Mr. Kumar Vaibhav, CGC
For the CBI : Mr. Prashant Pallav, ASGI
