New Delhi— The Supreme Court on Wednesday directed the immediate release of advocate Vikram Singh, who was arrested by the Special Task Force (STF) of Gurugram Police, Haryana. A three-judge Bench headed by Chief Justice B.R. Gavai ordered his release on a personal bail bond of ₹10,000, observing that his arrest appeared linked to his professional duties as a lawyer.
Senior advocate Vikas Singh, appearing for Vikram Singh, told the court that the advocate had been taken into custody merely because he represented a gangster in a criminal case. “If this continues, every lawyer defending an accused person in a criminal matter could face arrest,” he argued.
The Supreme Court directed its Registry to immediately communicate the release order to the Gurugram Commissioner of Police. The Bench also issued notices to the Haryana Police, Delhi Government, and Bar Council of India on Vikram Singh’s plea challenging his arrest. The case will be heard again next week.
The petitioner has sought not only his release but also a judicial inquiry into the STF’s alleged unlawful actions. He has requested the quashing of all proceedings related to FIR No. [details withheld] filed at Faridabad’s Sector-8 police station under Sections 302 and 34 of the IPC and Section 25 of the Arms Act.
According to the plea, Vikram Singh — an advocate registered with the Bar Council of Delhi since July 2019 — was arrested on October 31 without written grounds or independent witnesses, violating Articles 21 and 22 of the Constitution. He has been held in Faridabad Jail since then. The trial court had remanded him to 14-day judicial custody on November 1 through a “mechanical and non-speaking order,” lacking any reasoning or evidence linking him to the alleged crimes.
On November 6, Delhi’s District Court Bar Associations boycotted work across all district courts to protest what they called the false implication of the lawyer. The petition claimed that Singh was being targeted after he filed a complaint alleging custodial torture of his client, Jyoti Prakash alias “Baba,” who suffered a leg fracture while in STF custody.
The plea further argued that the investigating agency’s actions amounted to an attack on the independence of the legal profession. “Instead of respecting the independence of the Bar, the agency has sought to criminalize the petitioner’s professional association with his clients, undermining the rule of law and the sanctity of the advocate–client relationship,” it stated.
