JUDGMENT 1. A rule was issued on the District Magistrate or Deputy Commissioner of Manbhum to show cause why the order, dismissing the Petitioner Haladhar Bhumij's complaint, should not be set aside and a further enquiry held into the complaint, and why the proceedings under sec. 182 of the Indian Penal Code against Haladhar should not be stayed. The Deputy Commissioner has submitted an explanation; but it does not touch the objection which has been taken, namely,, that Haladhar on making his complaint was examined by Babu Kunja Behari Chatterji, a Deputy Magistrate, and the papers were then laid before the Deputy Commissioner and it was the Deputy Commissioner who finally dismissed the complaint under sec. 203 and ordered the prosecution. It has been laid down that a Magistrate cannot dismiss a complaint under sec. 203, unless he has followed the procedure prescribed under secs. 200 to 202. See Loke Nath Patra v. The Emperor 7 C. W. N. 525 : s. c. I. L. R. 30 Cal. 923(1903). In this case, the Deputy Commissioner never examined the Petitioner and therefore the order of dismissal was wrong. We, therefore, make the Rule absolute, and direct that the Petitioner be duly examined and the procedure prescribed by law be followed; and that the Deputy Commissioner do not take any proceedings against the Petitioner without first complying with the law. 2. We would wish to point out that it seems to us an unusual course that the Police should take a number of women away from their village to the Police Station on the pretext that they wished to examine them. It seems to us the examination might have been as well conducted at the women's own houses as at the Police Station, and have at the same time prevented the possibility of any such charges as have been now preferred against the Police. Further, when these charges were laid against a Sub-Inspector, it seems to us that the enquiry into the truth of these charges would have been better carried out if entrusted to a Deputy Magistrate than to the District Superintendent of Police, who, as bead of the Police, might not be in as impartial a position for discovering the truth, as an officer, not connected with the Police.