HC: Under no circumstance Magistrate should forward Original Sec.156(3)CrPC Complaint to Police

 

The Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh High Court has held that a Magistrate is not allowed, in no circumstances to forward original complaint under Section- 156(3) CrPC to the Police.

The single-judge bench of Justice Sanjay Dhar ruled that forwarding of O.A. to the concerned SHO with endorsement to take action is not in accordancw with the law.

The Court was adjudicating upon a plea whereby the petitioner was seeking a direction upon SHO, to lodge an FIR against private respondents in a civil dispute after the police failed to take action in the matter despite the directions from the Chief Judicial Magistrate.

It came to the notice of the Court that the petitioners had approached CJM by making an application under Section 156 (3) of Cr.P.C which was endorsed by the CJM to the concerned Police Station for necessary action under law.

The Court cited its previous ruling in Nasreen Bano Vs UT of J&K wherein it had already issued instructions on the subject and observed, 

"It is being seen that the applications in original are forwarded to the police as if the Police Station is an extension of their Court. It needs to be appreciated that any application filed before the Magistrate is record of the Court, needs to be properly diarized and not sent in original to the Police Station. Such act may even amount to destroying the record of the Court. It is, thus, emphasized that henceforth, whenever any application whether on civil side or criminal side is received by a Court, the same shall be necessarily diarized and registered. Any Magistrate/Court found violating; shall be liable to action on the administrative side and may also be charged for destroying the record of the Court "

It was stressed that it is only the copy of the order along with a copy of such application, which shall be sent to the Police or other authority for report or action, as the case may be.

Justice Dhar mentioned that despite circulation of aforesaid directions to the Judicial Magistrates, the applications in original are being sent by the Judicial Magistrates to the police stations with endorsements instead of sending a copy of order and the copy of such applications to the police concerned. By acting in this manner, the court said, the Magistrates are destroying the record of the Courts. 

"Therefore, it is once again emphasized that the aforesaid directions of this Court be complied with in letter and spirit and it is provided that any Judicial Magistrate found in breach of aforesaid directions shall be liable to be dealt with on the administrative side as well," the Court noted. 

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(With input from news agency language)

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