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Allahabad High Court · body

1992 DIGILAW 543 (ALL)

SERAJ ASLAM v. STATE OF UTTAR PRADESH

1992-04-20

B.P.SINGH

body1992
B. P. SINGH, J. ( 1 ) THIS is an application for revision against the order dated 21/03/1992, passed by Chief Judicial Magistrate, Varanasi in Criminal Case No. Nil of 1991 Seraj Aslam v. Police Officers. ( 2 ) SERAJ Aslam and others, the applicants, are Muslim residents of Varanasi City. Their case is that on 8/11/1991 some disturbance had taken place in Varanasi City as a result of which curfew was imposed. An F. I. R. under Sections 147 / 148 / 149 / 302 / 301 / 324 / 323 / 326, IPC was lodged in Police Station Dasaswamedh and Crime No. 194/ 91 was registered. Thereafter, the Police went into action in the Muslim populated areas and made a number of indiscriminate arrest of Doctors, old and infirm persons, minor boys and others from their houses. A number of persons received injuries and two of them Dr. Anis and Taimoor died as a result of attrocities committed upon them. The applicants went to lodge reports regarding the various acts of violation committed by the Police personnel in the police Stations but their reports were not lodged by the Station Officers concerned. Having failed in their attempts to lodge the F. I. R. against Police personnel, the applicants sent applications by registered post to Senior Superintendent of Police, Varanasi. The Senior Superintendent of Police also did not take any action. ( 3 ) THEREAFTER, the applicants moved an application before the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Varanasi under Section 156 (3) of the Code of Criminal Procedure with the prayer that since the applicants had exhausted all the remedies available to them under the law, the Police Officers concerned may be directed to investigate into the allegations which were made by the applicants in their applications to the Senior Superintendent of Police, Varanasi. ( 4 ) THE learned Chief Judicial Magistrate passed the following order upon the application :- * * * ( 5 ) AGGRIEVED by the above order, the applicants have come in revision. ( 6 ) IHAVE heard the learned counsel for the applicants and the learned A. G. A. and this application is being disposed of finally at the admission stage. ( 7 ) SECTION 154 of the Code of Criminal Procedure runs as follows :-"154. ( 6 ) IHAVE heard the learned counsel for the applicants and the learned A. G. A. and this application is being disposed of finally at the admission stage. ( 7 ) SECTION 154 of the Code of Criminal Procedure runs as follows :-"154. Information in cognizable cases.- (1) Every information relating to the commission of a cognizable offence, if given orally to an officer in charge of a police station, shall be reduced to writing by him or under his direction, and be read over to the informant; and every such information, whether given in writing or reduced to writing as aforesaid, shall be given by the person giving it, and the substance thereof shall be entered in a book to be kept by such officer in such form as the State Government may prescribe in this behalf. " ( 8 ) IN view of the provisions of Section 154 (1) of the Code, information of a cognizable offence has to be given to the officer in charge of a police station within whose jurisdiction the offence or the offences are said to have been committed. In case the information is oral, the officer in charge of the police station shall reduce the same to writing. The oral information may be reduced to writing either by the Station Officer or under his direction. Thereafter, the information is to be read over to the informant and has to be signed by the person giving the information. The provisions of Section 154 (1) of the Code are mandatory and the officer in charge of the police station is bound to record the information in the book which is kept at the police station for this purpose. Of course, the officer in charge is not bound to record the information if the said information is either vague or it originates from a person who is not an eye-witness or it is a cryptic telegram or telephonic message and the identity of the informant is not certain or the information does not disclose a cognizable offence. But if the information does disclose the commission of a cognizable offence, the officer in charge of the police station has no option but to record the information. But if the information does disclose the commission of a cognizable offence, the officer in charge of the police station has no option but to record the information. In case the officer in charge of the police station refuses to record the information regarding the cognizable offence, the aggrieved party can send the substance of such information in writing by post to the Superintendent of Police concerned, who, if satisfied that such information discloses the commission of cognizable offence, shall either investigate the case himself or direct the investigation to be made by any Police Officer subordinate to him. ( 9 ) IN the present case, neither the officers in charge of the various Police Stations of Varanasi have complied with the mandatory provisions of Section 154 nor the Senior Superintendent of Police, Varanasi has performed his part of the duty when the substance of the information was sent to him through registered post by the applicants. It is one of the main functions of the Police to register the case if the information is in writing and the information discloses the commission of cognizable offence. For reasons best known to them, neither the Station Officers of the various Police Stations nor the Senior Superintendent of Police, Varanasi thought it proper to take any action in the matter. The applicants had no option but to approach the Chief Judicial Magistrate, who, under Section 156 (3) of the Code, has been empowered to order an investigation in a cognizable offence. When an application, which discloses cognizable, offence or offences, is moved before the Chief Judicial Magistrate, two courses are open to him. Firstly, he can send the application to the Police Station concerned with the direction to register the case and investigate the same and secondly he can proceed to take action in exercise of powers detailed in Chapter XV of the Code. ( 10 ) THE power under Section 156 (3) of the Code is to be exercised judicially. In case the Chief Judicial Magistrate thinks that there is no reason to order any investigation on the facts which are alleged in an application although the facts alleged disclose a cognizable offence, he is bound to give reasons for his conclusion. ( 10 ) THE power under Section 156 (3) of the Code is to be exercised judicially. In case the Chief Judicial Magistrate thinks that there is no reason to order any investigation on the facts which are alleged in an application although the facts alleged disclose a cognizable offence, he is bound to give reasons for his conclusion. He is not supposed to pass just a cryptic and non-speaking order that he was of the view that the applicants were free to lodge complaint if they so desired. The order, in the present case, does not give any reason which persuaded the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Varanasi, not to direct the Police Officers concerned to register the case on the basis of the application of the applicants. ( 11 ) IN this view of the matter, the order of the learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Varanasi, dated 21/03/1992 cannot be upheld. The application for revision is allowed. The order of the learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Varanasi, upon the application of the applicants is hereby set aside. The learned chief Judicial Magistrate is directed to rehear the counsel for the applicants and dispose of the application of the applicants by a detailed order in which reasons for his conclusion are to be mentioned. Revision allowed. .