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Safety & Prep 3 min read

Hurt or Sick in Custody? You Still Have Medical Rights

Custody doesn't suspend your right to healthcare — this is one of the clearest D.K. Basu protections.

The D.K. Basu guidelines specifically require a medical examination of a detained person at the time of arrest and every 48 hours during detention, by a doctor on an approved panel — and the person has the right to request this.

Any existing injury or medical condition should be recorded at intake. This record becomes important both for your ongoing care and for later documentation if there's ever a dispute about how you were treated.

If a medical request is refused, that refusal itself is worth remembering clearly (time, who refused it) — it's a specific, actionable violation of an established safeguard.

D.K. Basu guidelines

Mandate medical examination at arrest and every 48 hours in custody

Backed By

The case law behind this

D.K. Basu v. State of West BengalAIR 1997 SC 610 — Mandated regular medical examination as one of the core custodial safeguards. Verify this case
Quick Answers

Still wondering about...

Can I request my own doctor?
The guidelines centre on an approved panel doctor, but you can also request that any pre-existing condition or medication need be specifically noted and accommodated.

Adhikar is an independent citizen-awareness platform, not a Government of India website and doesn't take a position on the NEET protests themselves — this is general information about rights every student already has, not legal advice for a specific situation. For that, contact a lawyer or the free legal aid helpline (15100).