Uma Shankar Singh v. The State Of Bihar
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
Criminal Writ Jurisdiction Case No.1572 of 2019 Arising Out of PS. Case No.-237 Year-2019 Thana- RUNISAIDPUR District- Sitamarhi ====================================================== UMA SHANKAR SINGH Son of Dinesh Singh Resident of Village - Athari Gachhi Tola, Ward No. 3, P.S.- Runni Saidpur, District- Sitamarhi ... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
1.
The State of Bihar 2.
The Director General of Police, Bihar, Patna 3.
The Inspector General of Police, Muzaffarpur, 4.
The Deputy Inspector General of Police, Muzaffarpur, 5.
The Superintendent of Police, Sitamarhi, 6.
The Officer in Charge, Runni Saidpur Police Station, District- Sitamarhi ... ... Respondent/s ====================================================== Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s :
Mr.Ashok Kumar Gupta For the Respondent/s :
Mr.Md.Harun Quareshi,AC to SC 01 ====================================================== CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE VIKASH JAIN ORAL JUDGMENT Date : 19-11-2019 Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and learned counsel for the respondents.
2. The present writ petition has been filed for the following reliefs as formulated by the petitioners _ (i) For a direction upon the respondents to take legal action so that criminal procedure code may be followed as such several information (written) has been given to all respondents for taking necessary legal action against the accused persons for their arrest but in spite of the information petition to the officer incharge and for his convenience named persons of FIR has been arrested nor further step of 82, 83 has been taken by and police sitting tight over the matter and life of the petitioner is in danger and at every moment accused persons can give
2/5 effect any happening as they are highly influenced persons.
(ii) For further direction to the respondents to protect the petitioners and his family members life who are being threatened for their life and property by the accused persons.
(iii) For any other relief/reliefs to which the petitioner be deemed entitled.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioner states that FIR in Runnisaidpur P.S. Case No. 237 of 2019 was instituted in which the victim girl, who was an eye-witness, has recorded in her statement under Section 164 Cr.P.C. that the accused persons had committed the offence, but no action is being taken against them, who are threatening the petitioner and the victim. The petitioner has filed applications before various police authorities for taking necessary action.
4. At the outset itself, this Court may advert to the scope of interference by this Court in matters of police investigation which falls within the exclusive domain of the executive, as laid down in Sakiri Vasu vs. State of Uttar Pradesh and Others, (2008) 2 SCC
409. The guiding principles and procedure to be followed in cases of failure by the police to register an FIR or if proper investigation is not being conducted by the police after registering an FIR, have been enunciated in lucid detail in the said judgment, extracts wherefrom may be reproduced fruitfully as under __ "11. In this connection we would like to state that if a person has a grievance that the police station is not registering his FIR under Section 154 Cr.P.C., then he can approach the Superintendent of Police under Section 154(3) Cr.P.C. by an application in writing. Even
3/5 if that does not yield any satisfactory result in the sense that either the FIR is still not registered, or that even after registering it no proper investigation is held, it is open to the aggrieved person to file an application under Section 156 (3) Cr.P.C. before the learned Magistrate concerned. If such an application under Section 156 (3) is filed before the Magistrate, the Magistrate can direct the FIR to be registered and also can direct a proper investigation to be made, in a case where, according to the aggrieved person, no proper investigation was made. The Magistrate can also under the same provision monitor the investigation to ensure a proper investigation.
17. In our opinion Section 156(3) Cr.P.C. is wide enough to include all such powers in a Magistrate which are necessary for ensuring a proper investigation, and it includes the power to order registration of an F.I.R. and of ordering a proper investigation if the Magistrate is satisfied that a proper investigation has not been done, or is not being done by the police. Section 156(3) Cr.P.C., though briefly worded, in our opinion, is very wide and it will include all such incidental powers as are necessary for ensuring a proper investigation.
24. In view of the abovementioned legal position, we are of the view that although Section 156(3) is very briefly worded, there is an implied power in the Magistrate under Section 156(3) Cr.P.C. to order registration of a criminal offence and /or to direct the officer in charge of the concerned police station to hold a proper investigation and take all such necessary steps that may be necessary for ensuring a proper investigation including monitoring the same. Even
4/5 though these powers have not been expressly mentioned in Section 156(3) Cr.P.C., we are of the opinion that they are implied in the above provision.
26. If a person has a grievance that his FIR has not been registered by the police station his first remedy is to approach the Superintendent of Police under Section 154(3) Cr.P.C. or other police officer referred to in Section 36 Cr.P.C. If despite approaching the Superintendent of Police or the officer referred to in Section 36 his grievance still persists, then he can approach a Magistrate under Section 156(3) Cr.P.C. instead of rushing to the High Court by way of a writ petition or a petition under Section 482 Cr.P.C. Moreover he has a further remedy of filing a criminal complaint under Section 200 Cr.P.C. Why then should writ petitions or Section 482 petitions be entertained when there are so many alternative remedies?
27. As we have already observed above, the Magistrate has very wide powers to direct registration of an FIR and to ensure a proper investigation, and for this purpose he can monitor the investigation to ensure that the investigation is done properly (though he cannot investigate himself). The High Court should discourage the practice of filing a writ petition or petition under Section 482 Cr.P.C. simply because a person has a grievance that his FIR has not been registered by the police, or after being registered, proper investigation has not been done by the police. For this grievance, the remedy lies under Sections 36 and 154(3) before the concerned police officers, and if that is of no avail, under Section 156(3) Cr.P.C. before the Magistrate or by filing a criminal complaint under
5/5 Section 200 Cr.P.C. and not by filing a writ petition or a petition under Section 482 Cr.P.C."
5. In the above circumstances and having regard to the above exposition of law, this Court is not inclined to interfere in the matter in exercise of its extra ordinary writ jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution.
6. As regards the threat perception to the petitioner to his day-to-day life and property, the petitioner is at liberty to approach the concerned District Level Security Committee with an appropriate representation for providing adequate security. If any such representation is filed within a period of one week from today, the same shall be considered and disposed of on its own merits in accordance with law expeditiously and in any event within a further period of two weeks thereafter.
7. The writ petition stands disposed of with the aforesaid observations and directions.
(Vikash Jain, J) Chandran/- AFR/NAFR NAFR CAV DATE NA Uploading Date 25.11.2019 Transmission Date 25.11.2019