PRAYAGRAJ, Nov. 11 -- The Allahabad high court while disposing of a bunch of petitions filed by hair stylist Jawed Habib and his son, has directed the police not to mechanically arrest the duo till the culmination of the investigation in the case.

The court passed this order when the counsel for petitioners confined the relief in the petition to grant of protection under Section 41-A CrPC. Section 41A of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) allows the police to issue a "notice of appearance" instead of an immediate arrest for certain offences where an arrest is not required. This notice requires the person to appear before the police officer at a specific time and place to assist with an investigation, and failure to comply can lead to the...