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TMI Blog1990 (6) TMI 184X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ing to direct the first respondent herein to produce the Report of the Superintendent of Police (S.P. s Report) on the basis of which the first respondent had laid the complaint. 2. Under Sec. 6 of the Import and Export Control Act, 1947 (hereinafter referred to as the Act), the first respondent had filed the complaint against the petitioners and respondents 2 and 3. Before the trial could commence, the petitioners filed an application under Sec. 91 of the Cr.P.C. seeking a direction from the court to the first respondent to produce the S.P. s report in the case, as well as the first information report, stating that for the cross-examination of the first respondent, who was cited as the first witness in the complaint, and for a just and p ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... sen to produce the document even for the court s perusal. 4. Per contra, Thiru B. Sriramula, learned Public Prosecutor, submitted that the S.P. s Report is a confidential communication, containing not only the result of the investigation but also the opinion of the S.P. about the merits of the case, his discussion about the strength and weakness of the prosecution case, the defence plea, the opinion of the S.P. about the investigation, role of his subordinate officers, embodying the legal opinion offered by the Law Officers of the Department and the report not coming within the ambit of Sec. 74 of the Evidence Act, and not being a Public document and not maintained under the Cr.P.C. could not be directed to be produced for the perusal of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n formation from Final Report, Information of a departmental nature which is of interest to DSPE Division Officers only, controversial points on which different opinions might have been expressed by different officers of the DSPE Division, SPE being required to settle the differences, the pros and cons of the case, the explanations given and the defence plea advanced by the suspected or accused persons, how they could be rebutted and explained, allegations against each accused which would necessitate action/banning of business etc., the discussion of the evidence against each accused, either to establish a criminal or departmental misdemeanor and so on. Clause 321 requires the S.P. s Report to be self-contained and the issues fully discusse ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... f Justice P.V. Rajamannar held that inter-departmental correspondence, which had passed between the Superintending Engineer and the Executive Engineer could not be compelled to be produced in court. 8. Relating to the case diary maintained by the police, a Full Bench of this Court in Selvanathan @ Raghavan v. State (1988 L.W. Crl. 503) has held that a reading of Sec. 172 (3) Cr. P.C. made it clear that, neither the accused nor his agents were entitled to call for the same either during on enquiry or trial, nor would the accused and his counsel be entitled to see the same merely because the entries in the case diary were referred to by the court. It was only when the entries are used by the police officer for refreshing his memory or the c ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... fficer but also their Law Officers. Conflicting opinions expressed by different subordinates officers have to be mentioned and settled by the S.P. in his report. There has to be a discussion with convincing arguments to lead to conclusions. Lapses and loopholes when noticed, has to be mentioned, together with suggestions for avoiding them. An S.P. s Report therefore, is not the kind of a report that is contemplated under Sec. 173 Cr.P.C., which is required to be sent to court on completion of the investigation. As rightly submitted by the learned Public Prosecutor for the first respondent, the opinions expressed in the report would not be admissible either under Sec. 45 or any other provision of the Evidence Act. Relating to the admissibili ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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