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TMI Blog1989 (2) TMI 418X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n with respect to them are as follows: Question No. 1: Whether under Section 482 Cr. P.C. the High Court has inherent powers to interfere with the investigation by the Police? ANSWER: Investigation into an offence is a statutory function of the police and the superintendence thereof is vested in the State Government, It is only in the rarest of rare cases, and that too, when it is found by the Court that the FIR and the investigation over a reasonable length of time, do not disclose the commission of a cognizable offence, or any offence of any kind, that the High Court may, under Section 482 of the Code interfere with the investigation. Question No. 2: Whether the High Court has powers to stay arrest during investigation? ANSWER: Under Section 482 of the Code, the High Court, may not direct the stay of arrest during investigation except for a limited period in case of such exceptional nature as is referred in the proceeding paragraphs. Question No. 3: Whether the decision reported in 1987 A.W.C. 404 lays down a correct proposit ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of habeas corpus. In such a case as the present, however, the Court's functions begin when a charge is preferred before it and not until then. It has sometimes been thought that Section 561A has given increased powers to the Court which it did not possess before that section was enacted. But this is not so. The section gives no new powers, it only provides that those which the Court already inherently possess shall be preserved and is inserted, as their Lordships think, lest it should be considered that the only powers possessed by the Court are those expressly conferred by the Criminal Procedure Code, and that no inherent power has survived the passing of that Act. No doubt, if no cognizable offence is disclosed, and still more if no offence of any kind is disclosed, the police would have no authority to undertake an investigation. In the case of State of West Bengal v. S.N. Basak it was held: At the time the respondent filed the petition in the High Court only a written report was made to the police by the Sub-Inspector of Police Enforcement Branch and on the basis of that report a First Information Report was recorded by the Officer-in-charge of the Police Station and ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of West Bengal v. S. N. Basak 1963 (1) Cri LJ 341 (SC) (supra) it was held (Para 3 of AIR and Cri LJ): Here also, no police challan or charge-sheet against the accused had been laid in court, when the petitions under Section 561-A were filed. The impugned proceedings were those which were being conducted in the course of police investigation. Prima facie, therefore, the rule in Basak's case would be attracted In the case of Kurukshetra University v. State of Haryana it was held : It surprises us in the extreme that the High Court thought that in the exercise of its inherent powers under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, it could quash a first information report. The police had not even commenced investigation into the complaint filed by the Warden of the University and no proceeding at all was pending in any court in pursuance of the FIR. It ought to be realised that inherent powers do not confer an arb ary jurisdiction on the High Court to act according to whim or caprice. The statutory power has to be exercised sparingly, with circumspection and in the rarest of rare cases. In the case of State of Bihar v. J.A.C. Saldanna it was held: There is a clea ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 1980 Cri LJ 98 (supra) were approved. 7. It is thus settled law that the power of the police to investigate into a report which discloses the commission of a cognizable offence is unfettered and cannot be interfered with by this Court in exercise of its inherent powers under Section 482 Cr. P.C. 8. The question that requires determination is whether an investigation can be quashed in the exercise of the inherent powers of this Court under Section 482 Cr. P.C. if no offence is disclosed in the first information report. 9. It is noteworthy that in the case of Emperor v. Nazir Ahmad (1945) 46 Cri LJ 413 (PC) (supra) although it was held: No doubt if no cognizable offence is disclosed, and still more if no offence of any kind is disclosed the police would have no authority to undertake an investigation. It was not held therein that if no offence is disclosed the investigation can be quashed by the High Court in the exercise of its inherent powers under Section 561-A Cr. P.C., 1898 which corresponds to Section 482 Cr. P.C., 1973. On the other hand, it was held therein: The functions of the judiciary and the police are complementary not overlapping and the combination ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n which emerges from these decisions and the other decisions, which are discussed by Brother A. N, Sen is that the condition precedent to the commencement of investigation under Section 157 of the Code is that the FIR must disclose, prima facie, that a cognizable offence has been committed. It is wrong to suppose that the police have an unfettered discretion to commence investigation under Section 157 of the Code. Their right of inquiry is conditioned by the existence of reason to suspect the commission of a cognizable offence and they cannot, reasonably, have reason so to suspect unless the FIR, prima facie, discloses the commission of such offence. If that condition is satisfied, the investigation must go on and the rule in Khwaja Nazir Ahmad will apply. The Court has then no power to stop the investigation, for to do so would be to trench upon the lawful power of the police to investigate into cognizable offences. On the other hand, if the FIR does not disclose the commission of a cognizable offence, the Court would be justified in quashing the investigation on the basis of the information as laid down or received. 10. Thus if the first information report does not disclose th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the Code. : In the present case the magistrate before whom the police report has been filed under Section 173 of the Code has yet not applied his mind to the merits of the said report and it may be assumed in favour of the appellant that his request for the quashing of the proceedings is not at the present stage covered by any specific provision of the Code. It is well established that the inherent jurisdiction of the High Court can be exercised to quash proceedings in a proper case either to prevent the abuse of the process of any court or otherwise to secure the ends of justice. Ordinarily criminal proceedings instituted against an accused person must be tried under the provisions of the Code, and the High Court would be reluctant to interfere with the said proceedings at an interlocutory stage. It is not possible, desirable or expedient to lay down any inflexible rule which would govern the exercise of the inherent jurisdiction. However, we may indicate some categories of cases where the inherent jurisdiction can and should be exercised for quashing the proceedings. There may be cases where it may be possible for the High Court to take the view that the institution or continuan ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n of the High Court under Section 561-A in the matter of quashing criminal proceedings, and that is the effect of the judicial decisions on the point. 14. The aforesaid observations are obviously applicable to proceedings in court after the submission of a charge-sheet or a complaint but are not applicable to investigation before the submission of the charge-sheet in court when proceedings for collection of evidence are conducted by a police officer. 15. It is true that in the case of Pratibha Rani v. Suraj Kumar it was held: We now come to the question as to whether or not a clear allegation of entrustment and misappropriation of properties was made by the appellant in her complaint and, if so, was the High Court justified in quashing the Complaint at that stage. It is well settled by a long course of decisions of this Court that for the purpose of exercising its power under Section 482 Cr. P.C. to quash a FIR or a complaint the High Court would have to proceed entirely on the basis of the allegations made in the complaint or the documents accompanying the same per se. It has no jurisdiction to examine the correctness or otherwise of the allegations. In case no offence is ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... thus has no inherent power under Section 482 Cr. P.C. to interfere with the investigation by the police. 20. Section 41(l)(a) Cr. P.C. is as follows: 41(1) Any police officer may without an order from a Magistrate and without a warrant, arrest any person - (a) who has been concerned in any cognizable offence, or against whom a reasonable complaint has been made, or credible information has been received or a reasonable suspicion exists of his having been so concerned. 21. Section 41(1)(a) Cr. P.C. thus confers power on a police officer regarding the arrest of a person with respect to a cognizable offence. This statutory power is exercised by a police officer during the investigation of a cognizable offence. It is a step in investigation as the accused is interrogated after his arrest and at times the interrogation of the accused leads to important discoveries which connect him with the crime and are admissible under Section 27 of the Evidence Act and the involvement of other persons in the crime is also known. The power of the police to arrest a person under Section 41 Cr. P.C. cannot thus be interfered with by this Court in exercise of its inherent powers. 22. In o ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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