CRPC Law Notes

7/13/23, 2:13 PM CRPC law notes
CRPC law notes

By Rachit Garg - March 10, 2021
Image source: https://rb.gy/5btnyi
Why do we need Criminal Procedure Law?

Anyone who has a rudimentary knowledge of criminal law will know that it deals with what
amounts to an offence and what are the penalties associated with such offences. However,
the nature of most criminal punishment is such that it confines the individual liberty of a
person. Imprisonment, if illegal, violates some of the most basic freedoms and rights
associated with a democracy. Thus, we need a law that sets the state’s machinery running
with respect to enforcing law and order and imparting justice, and regulates the procedure
followed by these institutions.The Criminal procedure code refers to the working of these
institutions for the entire time period between when a crime has been committed until the
time the sentence against the crime is passed and the case is closed. It refers to the
machinery to be adopted by the State when a violation of the penal law, i.e., offence under
the Indian Penal Code, has been detected or reported. It also lays down the principles and
procedure that must be followed while prosecuting and adjudicating other claims. The
investigation, inquiry and trial of the other offences are also governed by these provisions,
subject to any other law that may be in force which regulates the manner of investigation,
inquiry or trial of the matter.
Table of Contents 
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0.1. What is an Offence?

0.2. Types of Criminal Offences:
0.3. Functionaries under crpc
0.3.1. Hierarchy of court ( section 6-23)
0.3.2. Police as functionary (sec 36)
0.3.3. Public prosecutor (section 24 to 25 A)
0.4. Basic concepts and definition
0.4.1. Bailable and non-bailable offences [2(a)]
0.4.2. Cognizable and non-cognizable offences (154)
0.4.3. Charge [2(b)]
0.4.4. Police report [173(2)]
0.4.5. Investigation [2(h)]
0.4.6. Inquiry [2(g)]
0.4.7. Trial
0.4.8. Summons and warrants case [2(w), 2(x)]
0.5. Arrest and right of an arrested person [50(1), 50(2), 57, 303, 304]
0.5.1. Right to be produced before the Magistrate without unnecessary delay
0.5.2. Rights to be released on Bail
0.5.3. Rights to a fair trial
0.5.4. Right to consult a lawyer
0.5.5. Right to free Legal Aid
0.5.6. Right to keep silence
0.5.7. Right to be Examined by the medical practitioner
0.5.8. Other Rights
0.6. Provision of bail under the code (436-450)
0.6.1. What is bail ?
0.6.2. Circumstances under which bail is given by police
0.6.3. Types of bail
0.6.4. Procedure of bail
0.7. Why do we need Criminal Procedure Law?
0.7.1. What is an Offence?
0.7.2. Types of Criminal Offences:
0.8. Functionaries under crpc
0.8.1. Hierarchy of court ( section 6-23)
0.8.2. Police as functionary (sec 36)
0.8.3. Public prosecutor (section 24 to 25 A)
0.9. Basic concepts and definition
0.9.1. Bailable and non-bailable offences [2(a)]
0.9.2. Cognizable and non-cognizable offences (154)
0.9.3. Charge [2(b)]
0.9.4. Police report [173(2)]
0.9.5. Investigation [2(h)]
0.9.6. Inquiry [2(g)]
0.9.7. Trial
0.9.8. Summons and warrants case [2(w), 2(x)]
0.10. Arrest and right of an arrested person [50(1), 50(2), 57, 303, 304]
0.10.1. Right to be produced before the Magistrate without unnecessary delay
0.10.2. Rights to be released on Bail
0.10.3. Rights to a fair trial
0.10.4. Right to consult a lawyer
0.10.5. Right to free Legal Aid
0.10.6. Right to keep silence
0.10.7. Right to be Examined by the medical practitioner
0.10.8. Other Rights
0.11. Provision of bail under the code (436-450)

0.11.1. What is bail ?
0.11.2. Circumstances under which bail is given by police
0.11.3. Types of bail
0.11.4. Procedure of bail
0.11.5. Bail bonds
0.12. Complaint to a Magistrate (200-203)
0.12.1. Examination of the complainant
0.12.2. The procedure by Magistrate not competent to take cognizance of the case
0.13. Commencement of Proceeding before Magistrate (204-210)
0.13.1. Examination of complainant
0.14. Framing of Charges and Joinder of Charges
0.15. Jurisdiction of the Criminal Courts in Inquiries and Trials (179)
0.16. Types of trials: Sessions Trial, Warrant Trial, Summons Trial, Summary Trial
0.16.1. Warrant trial (238-250)
0.16.2. Process of a warrant trial
0.16.3. Summary Trial
0.16.4. Session trial (225-237)
0.16.5. Summon trial (251-259)
0.17. Judgement and Sentences under the Code
0.17.1. Judgement (353-360)
0.18. Submission of Death Sentences for Confirmation (366-371)
0.18.1. Submission for conformation to High Court (Section 366)
0.18.2. Power to direct further inquiry to be made or additional evidence to be taken (Section
367)
0.18.3. Power to the High Court to confirm sentence or annul conviction (Section 368)
0.18.4. Confirmation or new sentence to be signed by two judges (Section 369)
0.19. General Provisions as to Inquiries and Trial
0.19.1. Mode of taking and Recording Evidence
0.19.2. Marking of Exhibits
0.19.3. Cases
0.20. Execution, Suspension, Remission and Commutation of Sentences (432-435)
0.20.1. Execution of sentence of death
0.20.2. Suspension and remission of sentences
0.21. Appeals (372-394)
0.21.1. Object and scope of appeals
0.21.2. Appeals from convictions
0.21.3. Appeal to the Court of Session
0.21.4. Appeal to the High Court
0.21.5. Appeal to the Supreme Court
0.22. Reference and Revision (395-405)
0.23. Inherent Power of Court (482)
0.24. Transfer of Criminal Cases (406-411)
0.25. Plea Bargaining (265-A)
0.25.1. Procedure For Plea Bargaining
0.25.2. Bail bonds
0.26. Complaint to a Magistrate (200-203)
0.26.1. Examination of the complainant
0.26.2. The procedure by Magistrate not competent to take cognizance of the case
0.27. Commencement of Proceeding before Magistrate (204-210)
0.27.1. Examination of complainant
0.28. Framing of Charges and Joinder of Charges
0.29. Jurisdiction of the Criminal Courts in Inquiries and Trials (179)
0.30. Types of trials: Sessions Trial, Warrant Trial, Summons Trial, Summary Trial
0.30.1. Warrant trial (238-250)
0.30.2. Process of a warrant trial
0.30.3. Summary Trial
0.30.4. Session trial (225-237)
0.30.5. Summon trial (251-259)
0.31. Judgement and Sentences under the Code
0.31.1. Judgement (353-360)
0.32. Submission of Death Sentences for Confirmation (366-371)
0.32.1. Submission for conformation to High Court (Section 366)
0.32.2. Power to direct further inquiry to be made or additional evidence to be taken (Section
367)
0.32.3. Power to the High Court to confirm sentence or annul conviction (Section 368)
0.32.4. Confirmation or new sentence to be signed by two judges (Section 369)
0.33. General Provisions as to Inquiries and Trial
0.33.1. Mode of taking and Recording Evidence
0.33.2. Marking of Exhibits
0.33.3. Cases
0.34. Execution, Suspension, Remission and Commutation of Sentences (432-435)
0.34.1. Execution of sentence of death
0.34.2. Suspension and remission of sentences
0.35. Appeals (372-394)
0.35.1. Object and scope of appeals
0.35.2. Appeals from convictions
0.35.3. Appeal to the Court of Session
0.35.4. Appeal to the High Court
0.35.5. Appeal to the Supreme Court
0.36. Reference and Revision (395-405)
0.37. Inherent Power of Court (482)
0.38. Transfer of Criminal Cases (406-411)
0.39. Plea Bargaining (265-A)
0.39.1. Procedure For Plea Bargaining
What is an Offence?
An offence is a transgression of the law, by action or omission. That means there may be
some cases where the law requires you to abstain or refrain from performing a particular
act. There may also be cases where the law requires you to take a positive action, failing
which you may be held liable for the offence
Civil offences are against private persons (individuals like you and me) but criminal offences
are against the State. The State, represented by the Prosecutor, will argue the case against
the defendant. So now, the prosecutor will make the case against the suspect, by
submitting the issue sheet (pleadings) and the necessary evidence.
Types of Criminal Offences:

Bailable offence and Non-bailable offence
Cognizable and Non-Cognizable offence
Functionaries under crpc

There are various functionaries under the Code of Criminal Procedure,1973 who help to
regulate the various provisions of the code. The functionaries are essential for the proper
functioning of the code. The various functionaries mentioned under the code are the Police,
Public Prosecutors, Assistant Public Prosecutors, Additional Prosecutors, Prison authorities
and the Defence counsel. The powers and functions of the functionaries are clearly
mentioned in the code.
Hierarchy of court ( section 6-23)

The setup of criminal courts in India is of 2 types i.e. District and Metropolitan areas.
District
The setup of criminal courts in district areas is at 3 levels: –
At the lower level of the judiciary the courts are called courts of Judicial Magistrate which
are of 3 types: –
Judicial magistrate
Judicial magistrate second class
Special magistrate court
At the middle level of the judiciary, the courts at the sessions level include: –
Court of sessions
Additional courts of sessions
Assistant courts of sessions
Special courts
At the higher level of the judiciary, there are the High Court and Supreme Court.
Metropolitan areas
The courts at the session’s level are referred to as metropolitan courts and they are of 2
types: – Metropolitan magistrate courts and Special Metropolitan Magistrate
Chief Judicial Magistrate/Chief Metropolitan Magistrate exercises supervisory authority or

administrative authority of all the magistrates in sessions/division or metropolitan areas.
Classes of criminal courts
Section 6 of the Cr.P.C provides for the classes of criminal courts in every State apart from
the High Courts and the Supreme Court, namely –
Court of Session
Judicial Magistrates of the first class and, Metropolitan Magistrates in any metropolitan
areas
Judicial Magistrates of the second class; and
Executive Magistrates
Hierarchy of Criminal Courts
The hierarchy of the Criminal Courts in India can be understood through the following chart:
The Supreme Court of India – The Supreme Court Of India being the apex court of India
was established under Article 124 of the Constitution of India.
The High Courts – Article 141 of the Constitution Of India governs the High Courts and
the High Courts are bound by the judgment of the Apex Court.
Lower Courts of India have been classified as follows:
Metropolitan Courts
Chief Metropolitan Magistrate
First Class Metropolitan Magistrate
District Courts
Sessions Court
First Class Judicial Magistrate
Second Class Judicial Magistrate
Executive Magistrate
Separation of Judiciary from the Executive
The Code under Section 3(4) separates the judiciary from the executive and states that,
subject to the provisions of the Code:
Judicial Magistrate shall exercise the functions relating to matters in which

appreciation or shifting of evidence is involved or which involve the formulation of any
decision by which any person is exposed to a penalty or punishment or detention in
custody, inquiry or trial.
Executive Magistrate shall exercise the functions regarding the matters which are
executive or administrative in nature, for example, the granting or suspension or
cancellation of a license, withdrawing from prosecution or sanctioning a prosecution.
Court of Session
Section 9 of the Cr.PC empowers the State Government to establish the Sessions Court and
such court would be presided over by a Judge appointed by the High Court. The Additional
and Assistant Sessions Judges are also appointed by the High Court to exercise jurisdiction
in the Court of Session. The Sessions Court ordinarily sits at such place or places as ordered
by the High Court, but if in a case, the Court of Sessions decides to cater to the general
convenience of the parties and witnesses, then, it may, with the consent of the prosecution
and the accused preside its sittings at any other place. As per Section 10 of the Cr.P.C, the
assistant sessions judges are answerable to the sessions judge.
Court of Judicial Magistrate
Section 11 of the Cr.P.C states that in every district (not being a metropolitan area), the
State Government after consultation with the High Court has the power to establish courts
of Judicial Magistrates of the first and second classes. If the High Court is of the opinion
that it is necessary to confer the powers of a Judicial Magistrate of the first or second class
on any member of the Judicial Service functioning as a Judge in a civil court, then the High
Court shall do the same.
Chief Judicial Magistrate and Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate
As per Section 12 of the Code in every district other than metropolitan areas, Judicial
Magistrate of the first class shall be appointed as the Chief Judicial Magistrate. The High
Court is also empowered to designate a Judicial Magistrate of First Class as Additional CJM
and by such designation, the Magistrate shall be empowered to exercise all or any of the
powers of a Chief Judicial Magistrate.
Sub-Divisional Judicial Magistrate
In a sub-division, the judicial magistrate of the first class may be designated as the Sub-
divisional Judicial Magistrate. Such magistrate shall be subordinate to the Chief Judicial
Magistrate and will thus work under its control. Further, the Sub-divisional Judicial
Magistrate shall control and supervise the work of the Judicial Magistrates (except the
Additional CJM) in that subdivision.
Special Judicial Magistrates
By Section 13 the High Court is empowered to confer upon any person who holds or has
held any post under the Government, the powers conferred or conferred by or under this
Code on a Judicial Magistrate of first or second class. Such Magistrates shall be called
Special Judicial Magistrate and shall be appointed for a term not exceeding one year at a
time. In relation to any metropolitan area outside the local jurisdiction of a Special Judicial
Magistrate, he may be empowered by the High Court to exercise the powers of a
Metropolitan Magistrate.
Local Jurisdiction of Judicial Magistrate
According to Section 14, the Chief Judicial Magistrate shall define the local limits of the
areas within which the Magistrates appointed under Section 11 or under Section 13 may
exercise all or any of the powers with which they may be vested under this Code. The
Special Judicial Magistrate may hold its sitting at any place within the local area for which it
is established.
The jurisdiction in case of Juveniles (Section 27)– This section directs that a juvenile
(person below the age of 16) can not be given a death penalty or a punishment of
imprisonment for life. Chief Judicial Magistrate or any other Court specially empowered
under the Children Act, 1960 (60 of 1960) tries such type of cases.
Subordination of judicial magistrate
Section 15(1) provides that a Sessions Judge shall be superior to the Chief Judicial
Magistrate and the Chief Judicial Magistrate shall be superior to the other Judicial
Magistrate. This can be clearly understood by the above-mentioned diagram explaining the
hierarchy of courts.
Courts of Metropolitan Magistrate
They are established in every metropolitan area. The presiding officers shall be appointed
by the High Court. The jurisdiction and powers of such Metropolitan Magistrates shall
extend throughout the metropolitan area. The High Court shall appoint Metropolitan
Magistrate as the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate.
Special metropolitan magistrates
The High Court may confer upon Special Metropolitan Magistrates the powers which a
Metropolitan Magistrate can exercise in respect to particular cases or particular classes of
cases. Such Special Metropolitan Magistrates shall be appointed for such term, not
exceeding one year at a time.
The Special Metropolitan Magistrate may be empowered by the High Court or the State
Government to exercise the powers of a Judicial Magistrate of the first class in any area
outside the metropolitan area.
Subordination of Metropolitan Magistrate
Section 19 of the Code provides that the Sessions Judge shall be superior to the Additional
Chief Metropolitan Magistrate and Chief Metropolitan Magistrate and other Metropolitan
Magistrates shall be subordinate to the CMM.
The Chief Metropolitan Magistrate has the power to give special orders or make rules
regarding the distribution of business among the Metropolitan Magistrates and allocation of
business to an Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate.
As per Section 20, in every district and in every metropolitan area, Executive Magistrates
shall be appointed by the State Government and one of them shall be appointed as the
District Magistrate. An Executive Magistrate shall be appointed as an Additional District
Magistrate and such Magistrate shall have such powers of a District Magistrate under the
Code.
As executive magistrates are supposed to execute administrative functions they were

neither given power to try accused nor pass verdicts. They are mainly concerned with
administrative functions. The executive magistrates have the power to determine the
amount of bail according to the provisions of the warrant issued against the accused, pass
orders restraining people from committing a particular act or preventing persons from
entering an area (Section 144 Cr.P.C), they are the authority to whom people are taken to
when they are arrested outside the local jurisdiction, the executive magistrates are the only
one with the power to disperse a crowd or an unlawful assembly, further, they are
authorized to use force while doing the same according to the gravity and requirements of
the situation. Executive Magistrates are assisted by the police while executing their
functions.
As per Section 21, Special Executive Magistrates shall be appointed by the State
Government for particular areas or for the performance of particular functions.
Local jurisdiction of the executive magistrate
Section 22 of the CrPC empowers the District Court to define the areas under which the
Executive Magistrates may use all or any of the powers which are exercisable by them
under this code but under some exceptions, the powers and jurisdiction of such Magistrate
shall extend throughout the district.
Subordination of executive magistrate
As per Section 23, the Executive Magistrates would be subordinate to the District Magistrate
however Additional District Magistrate shall not be subordinate to the District Magistrate.
Every Executive Magistrate but, the Sub-divisional Magistrate shall be subordinate to the
Sub-divisional Magistrate.
The executive magistrates shall follow the rules or special orders given by the district
magistrate, regarding the distribution of business among them. The district magistrate also
has the powers to make rules or special orders relating to the allocation of business to an
Additional District Magistrate.
Police as functionary (sec 36)

There is no provision in the code that creates the police or police officers. It assumes the
existence of police and arms them with various responsibilities and powers.
Organisation
The Police Act, 1861 establishes the police force. The Act says that “the police force is an
instrument for the detection of crime and its prevention.” The Director-General of Police is
vested with the overall administration of police in an entire state, however, in a district,
under the general control and directions of District Magistrate, administration of police is
done by DSP (District Superintendent of Police).
A certificate is provided to every police officer and by virtue of such certificate, he is vested
with the functions, privileges and powers of a police officer. Such certificate will cease to be
in effect once he/she is no longer a police officer.
The Code confers upon the police officers certain powers such as the power to investigate,
search and seizure, make an arrest and investigate the members enrolled as police officers.
Extensive powers are conferred to the officer in charge of a police station.
Public prosecutor (section 24 to 25 A)

A Public Prosecutor is considered as the agent of the state to represent the interest of
common people in the criminal justice system. The prosecution of the accused is the duty of
the state but not individually the duty of the aggrieved party. They are appointed in almost
all countries. The Public Prosecutor is defined in Section 24 of Cr.P.C. They serve as the
basic principle of Rule of Law i.e. auld alteram partem (no person shall be condemned
unheard).
Section 2(u) of the Code of Criminal Procedure defines Public Prosecutor. “A person who is
appointed under Section 24 of CrPC and it also includes any person who is acting under the
directions of the Public Prosecutor.
Functions
The functions of the Public Prosecutor differ according to their designation.
Public Prosecutor- supervise the function exercised by the Additional Public Prosecutor in
Session Court and High Court.
Chief Prosecutor- supervise the functions exercised by Assistant Public Prosecutor in

Metropolitan Magistrate Court.
Additional Prosecutor- conduct criminal proceedings in the Session Court.
Assistant Public Prosecutor- they examine the charge sheet prepared by agencies and
submit the acquittal or discharge. They also are responsible for the evaluation of
evidence and filing revisions petitions. They also conduct the criminal proceedings in the
Court of Metropolitan Magistrate.
Director of Prosecution- it is the head office. They exercise the overall control and
supervision of officers of Directorate. They also look after the Account Branches.
The objective of establishing a Directorate of Public Prosecutors is to supervise and

scrutinise the functions relating to various prosecution agencies at Assistant Session level
and Session level except at High Court.
Reasons for the Appointment of Public Prosecutor
Whenever any crime is committed against a group or individual, it is assumed that it has
been committed against society. It is the duty of the state to provide justice to any group of
society or person who is affected by the crime. In India, it is necessary that the criminal
justice system should function within the limits of the Indian Constitution, which means that
it is necessary for the Public Prosecutor to act in accordance with the principles of:
Equality before law
Protection against double jeopardy
Protection against self-incrimination
Protection against ex-post law
Right to life and personal liberty except procedure established by law
Presumption of innocence until proven guilty
Arrest and detention must be in accordance with the provisions of Cr.P.C.
Equal protection of laws
Speedy trial
Prohibition of discrimination
Right of accused to remain silent
Defence council as a functionary
In most of the cases an accused person is a layman and is not aware of the technicalities of
law, therefore, as per Section 303, an accused person shall have a right to be defended by
a counsel of his own choice. As the accused or his family employs the pleader to defend the
accused against the alleged charges, such a pleader is not a government employee. For
ensuring a just and fair trial it is essential that a qualified legal practitioner presents the
matter on behalf of the accused. Therefore, Section 304 provides that if the accused does
not have sufficient means to hire a counsel, a pleader shall be assigned to him by the court
at the state’s expense. There are various schemes through which an accused who does not
have sufficient means to hire a pleader can get free legal aid, such as the Legal Aid Scheme
of State, Legal Aid and Service Board, Supreme Court Senior Advocates Free Legal Aid
society and Bar Association. The Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987 provides needy people
with free legal aid.
Basic concepts and definition
Bailable and non-bailable offences [2(a)]

Bailable offence is one where the defendant (the one who is defending himself in a
criminal case) may be able to secure his release upon the payment of bail. These are the
cases where the grant of bail is a matter of course and right. If a person is held under a
non-bailable presence, he cannot claim the grant of bail as a matter of right. But the law
gives special consideration in favor of granting bail where the accused is under sixteen, a
woman, sick or inﬁrm, or if the court is satisfied that it is just and proper for any other
special reason to give rather than refuse bail.
Cognizable and non-cognizable offences (154)

Offences can be categorized into various types, but we will particularly focus on two :
Cognizable Offences and Non-cognizable Offences. Under Cr.P.C., Cognizable Offence is
discussed under Section 154. Section 2(c) of Cr.P.C. defines it to be an offence in which the
police officer can arrest the convict without a warrant and can start investigation without
the due permission of the court. These are the offences that are usually very serious and
generally heinous in nature. For example: Rape, murder, kidnapping, dowry death etc. All
cognizable offences are non-bailable due to their serious and heinous nature. Section 2(1)
of Cr.P.C. defines Non-cognizable Offence. It refers to it as an offence for which a police
officer has no authority to arrest without a warrant. These are the offences that are not
serious or usually petty in nature. For example: assault, cheating, forgery, defamation etc.
Non-cognizable offences are usually bailable because of their non serious nature.
Section 154
Information in cognizable cases.
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 signed 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.
A copy of the information as recorded under sub-section (1) shall be given forthwith, free
of cost, to the informant.
Any person aggrieved by a refusal on the part of an officer in charge of a police station to
record the information referred to in subsection (1) may send the substance of such
information, in writing and by post, to the Superintendent of Police concerned who, if
satisfied that such information discloses the commission of a cognizable offence, shall
either investigate the case himself or direct an investigation to be made by any police
officer subordinate to him, in the manner provided by this Code, and such officer shall
have all the powers of an officer in charge of the police station in relation to that offence.
With reference to the particular section, an officer can register an F.I.R. and take cognizance
of and arrest a suspect without seeking court’s prior approval. If she/he has a “reason to
believe” that a person has committed the offence and is satisfied that arrest is a necessary
step. Then within 24 hours of arrest, the officer must get the detention ratified by the
concerned judicial magistrate. Police officers also have a chance to conduct a preliminary
investigation before registering the F.I.R. to cross check the facts but the liability lies totally
upon him for the same. This is because if the Police Officer doesn’t register an F.I.R. at the
moment the information is received, and there is any mishappening because he was not
sure of the serious offence like murder taking place and someone loses his life will be a
careless mistake.
Charge [2(b)]
Section 2(b) of the Criminal Procedure Code defines charge as any head of a charge when
the charge contains more heads than one. The legal definition mentioned in the code is not
inclusive enough for a layman to decipher. However, the definition could simply be
interpreted to mean as an “accusation”. It is the concrete accusation as recognised by the
Magistrate or the Court, based on the prima facie evidence adduced against the accused.
Purpose of Charge
Under the Code of Criminal Procedure, an accused should be informed of the offence of
which he is charged. The basic purpose of the charge is to let the accused know of the
offence that he is charged with so that he can prepare his defence. The accused should be
informed of the charge against him at the very beginning. Every accused has the right to
know what the prosecution has against him. The underlying principle of the criminal law on
informing the accused of the charge against him is to provide an equal opportunity to each
and every individual to prepare his defence and avail justice. It must be noted that in case
of serious offences, the statute requires the charge to be reduced to writing precisely and
clearly and must be read to the accused and explained with precision and clarity.
Police report [173(2)]

Section 2(r) of CrPC talks about the expression ‘police report’, according to which a report is
forwarded by a police officer to a Magistrate under Section 173(2). The report should be in
the manner that is prescribed by the State Government as per the particulars mentioned in
clause (a) to (g) of sub-section(2) of Section 173. The police report submitted under this
section is called the End Report. If this report constitutes an attempt of a crime by an
accused person, that report is commonly called the “charge-sheet” or the “challan”.
The Magistrate can not interfere in any of his judicial capacity and as a court until he
receives the final report by the police officer as per Section 173. Also, there can be no
occasion for the Magistrate to make any judicial order about the police investigation as
stated in M.L. Sethi v. R.P. Kapur [AIR 1967 SC 528]. A Magistrate who has disposed of a
police report is competent to revise his order and require the “charge-sheet”. Where the
complainant and the accused filed complaints against each other, but there is no report filed
by the police in the court and statements in respect of the complaint made by the accused.
It was held to be a handicap to the accused in a proper projection of his defence and the
accused were set at liberty. The police “charge-sheet” correlates to the complaint made by
the private individual on which criminal proceedings are initiated. When the charge sheet is
sent, the initial stage of investigation along with the preparation. Upon the document
provided by the police, the Magistrate can take the offence into his consideration.When the
Sub-Inspector of police after making an investigation and examining as many as ten
witnesses referred in the case as “mistake of fact”, the Magistrate then by accepting the
report, orders to record it as a judicial order and that the case could not be re-opened by a
Police Inspector by filing a charge-sheet after re-investigation for the same.
Inquest report
The term ‘inquest’ has not been outrightly defined in the Code. The meaning of inquest is to
seek legal or judicial inquiry to ascertain the facts. According to the Black’s Law Dictionary,
the term ‘inquest’ means an inquiry conducted by the medical officers or sometimes with
the help of a jury into the manner of death of a person, who has died under suspicious
circumstances or has died in prison. The provisions relating to the inquest report are
covered under Chapter XII of the Code. An inquest report is made primarily to look into the
causes of unnatural death. In the case of unnatural death, the circumstances have to be
examined. The State owes a duty to its citizens to ensure their health and life. When a
crime is committed, it is committed against the State. In the circumstances of unnatural
death, it is the duty of the State to ascertain the cause of death and accordingly take
further measures. This is the purpose of an inquest report, to establish facts that can be
used to apprehend and punish the offender.
Types of Police Reports
Police reports are different according to the incidents. Types of police reports include:
Arrest reports
An arrest report often called an arrest record, describes allegations or charges against an
individual. Following the arrest of a suspect, mostly by a representative of the judge who
signed the arrest warrant, the arrest report contains a victim’s claims about a perpetrator
and all the information of the suspected crime found in the initial report of the incident.
Fingerprint details may also be included in the arrest reports and also included the bail
amount if the judge establishes.
Investigative reports
When a case is opened by filing a police report, an investigation process may be conducted
by a police investigator or another investigating officer. While the Right to Information Act
(RTI) makes certain police records accessible to the public, forensic reporting is not made
available in public so as not to hinder the prosecution of an accused suspect. Parties outside
the police service can conduct their own investigations, such as insurance companies and
private investigators. However, these allegations are not subject to an inquiry by the police.
Traffic reports A police traffic report states the violation made by a driver and offence
accepted by him and includes his personal details, name, license number, tag number, and
model number of the car.
Supplemental police reports
When a police report may be revised, an officer can request an additional report reflecting
the new information by updating or rectifying it. For the initial report, the reporting officer
can omit unintentionally any information or incorrectly write a typo in the report. In the
case of an accident occurred at night, any photographs taken by the officer at that time do
not clearly show the details of an accident. For this, the additional supplementary pages are
added to the initial report and mark as original report and no alteration can be done to the
initial report.
Witness reports
In police interviews with traffic accidents or crime witnesses, police officers record
statements on accounts of witnesses. Such witness accounts supplement the primary
incident or injury report but are usually conducted in different ways. A big blank area of a
witness form for handing out a report about a traffic accident or injury report is also
included in the original witness report. Often, a witness will compose their account with a
blank sheet of paper. In the case of an accident or injury, the witness reports shall be made
after a subsequent interview with the victim.
Administrative reports
Police officers and organisations in the corporate business relationship sector must maintain
such administrative records comparable with non-police businesses. Such reports can
include statistical details on detention, duties, budget items, and other things every day.
When a victim or some other member of the public asks for any details on the Right to
Information Act (RTI), such requests will be reported in an administrative report and made
available by a police department official.
Internal affairs reports
Law enforcement department’s check-and-balance accountability, an officer is often required

to submit an inquiry into internal affairs. Those inquiries are reported as complaints of
misconduct on internal affairs reports. Every allegation returns one of four findings:
sustained (the accusation is proven); unsustained (the accusation does not include
sufficient proof to support or disprove it); unfounded (the event did not occur or was not
based on facts uncovered by the investigation); or exonerated (the alleged incident did
occur in fact, but the action of the officer was considered to be reasonable and lawful).
Investigation [2(h)]
The term ‘investigation’ has been defined in Section 2(h) of the Code of Criminal procedure,
Investigation includes all the proceedings under this Code for the collection of evidence
conducted by a police officer or by any person (other than a Magistrate) who is authorised
by a Magistrate in this behalf. The investigation of an offence consists of:
Proceeding to the spot.
Ascertainment of facts and circumstances of the case.
Discovery and arrest of the suspect.
Collection of evidence which may include:
Examination of persons concerned and reducing their statement to writing.
Search and seizure of places and things respectively considered necessary.
Rupan Deol Bajaj v. K.P.S. Gill (AIR 1996 SC 309) If the magistrate evaluates that the
accused person was wrongly released, then he has the power to take cognizance of the case
and can further orders to put the accused on trial for the same offence. But if he decides to
drop the case and there is a ‘protest petition’ the complainant has filed, the magistrate is
entitled to initiate action on the same. In this case, a senior police officer slapped a senior
lady IAS officer on her posterior at a party in the presence of an elite gathering and the
Magistrate accepted the final report without giving reasons, submitted by the police in the
case initiated by the lady officer under the Section 354/509 of IPC. Therefore, the Supreme
Court set aside the order and restored the case directing the Magistrate to continue with the
case despite the criticisms made by the complainant under Section 210 of CrPC.
Inquiry [2(g)]
We can observe that often people get perplexed regarding the usage of inquiry and enquiry
which I will clear under this article; Enquiry means to ask a question, and inquiry is a formal
investigation, enquiry though follows under the same page but has a level of difference in
them. As discussed above, the inquiry is the process of seeking information from a person
who might give some relevant information about the matter in question. Inquiry is defined
under Section 2(g) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 referring to any inquiry other
than trial under this code, conducted by a Magistrate or a Court. A Trial in every case
initiates when the inquiry ends. The work of the police officer under the Code of Criminal
Procedure, 1973 cannot be termed as an inquiry but it is understood as investigation.
Section 159 of CrPC (Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973) explains an order given by the
magistrate or Court to make a preliminary inquiry in order to see whether the offence has
been committed and if so, who are the people involved in the same.
Procedure of inquiry
A brief to section 154
As we have observed in Section 154, that the police officer can only take action and
investigate in cases of cognizable offences. On the contrary, an order by a magistrate is
needed to the police officers in order to investigate non-cognizable offences.
Procedure of preliminary inquiry (Section 157)
Section 157 of CRPC deals with the procedure of preliminary inquiry which explains that
when certain information about an offence is received by the police officer and the
highlighting point of the offence is that it should be a cognizable offence, so if any
information regarding any cognizable offence is received by the police officer, he is
accountable to make the report of it and such report shall be sent to the magistrate of that
jurisdiction.
What is the need to send the report to the magistrate
There are certain reason why the report made by the police officer shall be sent to the
magistrate of the jurisdiction which are as follows:
As the district is under the magistrate, it is his responsibility to be aware of all the crime
being committed in the district and ensure speedy disposal of the same.
A magistrate can supervise the investigation and inquiries of the police officer.
If the magistrate finds that the investigation is not being held properly he can also give
directions so that the case can be disposed of easily and justice shall be rendered to all.
The magistrate after receiving the report shall take cognizance of the offence and work in
person or the police officer appoint an officer, not below the rank of State government
who may investigate, supervise, look up the facts and circumstances and arrest the
offender if necessary.
Trial
To further proceed with the various concepts associated with Trial in the criminal system in
India, we must learn with the very basic concept of trial. The term ‘trial’ basically means the
Court’s decision or a judicial judgement by the Court so as to decide the person’s guilt or
innocence. A trial is of a very crucial importance in a criminal case. Section 190 CrPC[v]
states those requirements that need to be accomplished before proceedings can be started
by the Magistrate, this statement basically means the power of the Magistrate to take
knowledge of a case. Section 204 of CrPC basically provides the Magistrate with the sole
power of either to take the case into consideration or to reject the case on some grounds.
This section also determines the stage whether a case can enter the stage of trial or not.
Types of Trial
Mainly, there are four types of trial:
Warrant Case- A warrant case associates itself to the case where the crimes punishable
with death, imprisonment for life or imprisonment for a term exceeding two years are
considered. Trial of warrant cases are further classified into two more types namely:
1. Cases instituted by a police report- A police report is basically a report which a

Magistrate receives from a police officer under Sec. 173. The police should send their
report as soon as they complete the investigation and the accused appears in front of a
Magistrate before starting the trial.
2. Cases established other than a police report- Here, no kind police report or investigation
is required. The Magistrate directly receives a complaint which is filed before him.
The sections from 225-237 of the Criminal Procedure Code basically deals with the warrant
cases by a Court of Session.
Sessions case- These are the cases where the offences subjected to punishment by law is
death, life imprisonment for a term more than seven years, in such cases trial has to be
dealt in a Sessions court after the case has already been forwarded by a Magistrate to
the Court or after the commission of the crime. Sections as mentioned in the CrPC
starting from 238-250 handle the warrant cases by Magistrates. As decided in case of the
Inspector of Police vs R. Jeeva Jothi And Ors., the Magistrate showed some irregularities
while conducting an enquiry of a case after a final report was submitted by the inspector
of police to him. As mentioned in the CrPC, that when a Magistrate accepts a police
report u/s 190(b), the Magistrate should take cognizance of that particular offence also.
Under section 209, a Magistrate when he has noted that the case can be exercised only
in the Court of Sessions, it is compulsory for him that the case should be passed on to
the correct authorities who have proper jurisdiction over the case after considering the
procedure and formalities as mentioned under section 207 and 208. In the present case,
the Magistrate considered all the materials and documents related to the case and
discharged the accused for the offences mentioned under section 307 and 450 of IPC,
which a Magistrate is not allowed to do so and carries no power for the same. And after
the deletion, the Magistrate took the case into his file and started a trial which is clearly
prohibited under the law.
The Madras High Court in this case questioned the competency of the Magistrate and also
stated that the decisions taken and the procedure adopted by the Magistrate were unlawful
and wrong in nature and held that without further delaying the case, it should be sent to
the Court of Sessions with immediate effect.
Summons cases- These are the cases where those crimes where the punishment for the
offence is less than two years falls under the category of the summons cases, further in
these cases there is no requirement of framing the charges. The Court upon finding these
cases issues a ‘notice’ as a material for the accusation and then sends it to the accused.
If there is any kind of possibility that the charges in summons cases are such that they
might be converted into a warrant case in the eyes of the Magistrate for serving the
justice.
In the case of Gulabjeet Singh & Ors vs Ravel Singh, the issue was whether Section 258 can
apply to the proceedings started under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act[vii]?
Section 258 simply states the proceedings can only be stopped when the cases are filed
other than a complaint, but when the prosecution has already established by the State,
then this section would not be applicable and further elaborated that in such cases where a
private party has filed a complaint then Sec. 258 wouldn’t be applicable. The petition was
dismissed by the High Court of Himachal Pradesh.
Summary cases- Basically, summary trials are those kinds of trials where speedy justice
has to be given which means those cases which are to be disposed of speedily and the
process of these cases is quite simplified. One thing which is important to note here is
that only small offences are taken as a part of the summary cases, cases which are
complicated in nature and are quite big are reserved for summons or warrant trials. With
this type of trial, one can easily point out the concept of ‘justice delayed is justice
denied’. A very important procedural part associated with these kinds of trials is that in
summary trials only proceedings are recorded and as such no big part of proceedings are
made. In summary trials the components related to evidences and the disposition are
simply recorded in a brief manner while in regular trials, the evidences and all the
substances related to the cases are carefully considered.[viii]
Summons and warrants case [2(w), 2(x)]

“Summon” is a document that commands a person to whom it is served to appear before
the court and to answer the complaint made against him. Summon is issued by the
Magistrate to the accused under section 204(1) (a) of Cr.P.C, 1973. “Summon case” means
a case relating to an offence, not being a warrant case.
Summon cases can be referred from the definition of the warrant case i.e., offences
punishable with death, imprisonment for life and imprisonment for the terms exceeding two
years called as warrant cases. So summon cases are those in which punishment will not
exceed imprisonment for two years. It can be said that summon cases are not of serious
nature, so it needs to be decided speedily, without dispensing the requisites of the fair trial.
The procedure to deal with such matters is provided in section 251 to 259 of Cr.P.C, 1973
which is not as serious/formal as other trials (Session trial, warrant case instituted on the
police report and warrant cases instituted otherwise than on police report).
Arrest and right of an arrested person [50(1), 50(2),

57, 303, 304]
Section 50 of CrPC says that every police officer or any other person who is authorised to
arrest a person without a warrant should inform the arrested person about the offence for
which he is arrested and other grounds for such an arrest. It is the duty of the police officer
and he cannot refuse it. Section 50A of CrPC obligates a person making an arrest to inform
of the arrest to any of his friends or relative or any other person in his interest. The police
officer should inform the arrested person that he has a right to information about his arrest
to the nominated person as soon as he is put under custody.
Section 55 of CrPC states that whenever a police officer has authorised his subordinate to
arrest any person without a warrant, the subordinate officer needs to notify the person
arrested of the substance of written order that is given, specifying the offence and other
grounds of arrest. Section 75 of CrPC says that the police officer(or any other officer)
executing the warrant should notify the substance to the person arrested and show him a
warrant if it required. Article 22(1) of the Constitution of India also states that no police
officer should arrest any person without informing the ground of arrest.
Right to be produced before the Magistrate without

unnecessary delay
Section 55 of CrPC states that a police officer making an arrest without a warrant should
produce the arrested person without unnecessary delay before the Magistrate having
jurisdiction or a police officer in charge of the police station, subject to the conditions of the
arrest. Section 76 of CrPC states that the police officer executing a warrant of arrest should
produce the arrested person before the court before which he is required by law to produce
the person. It states that the person should be produced within 24 hours of arrest. While
calculating the time period of 24 hours, it must exclude the time which is required for the
journey from the place of detaining to the Magistrate Court. Article 22(2) of the Constitution
states that the police officer making an arrest should be produced before the Magistrate
within 24 hours of arrest. If the police officer fails to produce before the Magistrate within
24 hours, he will be liable for wrongful detention.
Rights to be released on Bail

Subsection(2) of Section 50 of CrPC states that when a police officer arrests any person
without a warrant for an offence other than non-cognizable offence; he shall inform him
that he has a right to release on bail and to make an arrangement for the sureties on his
behalf.
Rights to a fair trial

Any provision related to the right to a fair trial is not given in CrPC, but such rights can be
derived from the Constitution and the various judgements. Article 14 of the Constitution of
states that ”all persons are equal before the law”. It means that all the parties to the
dispute should be given equal treatment.
Right to consult a lawyer

Section 41D of CrPC states the right of the prisoners to consult his lawyer during
interrogation.
Article 22(1) of the constitution states that the arrested person has a right to appoint a
lawyer and be defended by the pleader of his choice.
Section 303 of CrPC states that when a person is alleged to have committed an offence
before the criminal court or against whom proceedings have been initiated, has a right to
be defended by a legal practitioner of his choice.
Right to free Legal Aid

Section 304 of CrPC states that when a trial is conducted before the Court of Session, and
the accused is not represented by the legal practitioner, or when it appears that the accused
has no sufficient means to appoint a pleader then, the court may appoint a pleader for his
defence at the expense of the State. Article 39A obligates a state to provide free legal aid
for the purpose of securing justice. This right has also been explicitly given in the case of
Khatri (II) VS State of Bihar. The court held that “to provide free legal aid to the indigent
accused person”. It is also given at the time when the accused is produced before the
Magistrate for the first time along with time commences. The right of the accused person
cannot be denied even when the accused fails to apply for it. If the state fails to provide
legal aid to the indigent accused person, then it will vitiate the whole trial as void. In the
case of Sukh Das vs Union Territory of Arunachal Pradesh, the court held:- “The right of an
indigent accused cannot be denied even when the accused fails to apply for it”. If the state
fails to provide legal aid to the indigent accused person it will vitiate the whole trial as void.
Right to keep silence

Right to keep silent is not recognized in any law but it can derive its authority from CrPC
and the Indian Evidence Act. This right is mainly related to the statement and confession
made in the court. Whenever a confession or a statement is made in the court, it is the duty
of the Magistrate to find that such a statement or the confession was made voluntarily or
not. No arrested person can be compelled to speak anything in the court. Article 20 (2)
states that no person can be compelled to be a witness against himself. This is the principle
of self- incrimination. This principle was reiterated by the case of Nandini Satpathy vs P.L
Dani. It stated, “No one can force any person to give any statement or to answer questions
and the accused person has a right to keep silent during the process of interrogation”.
Right to be Examined by the medical practitioner

Section 54 of CrPC states that when the arrested person alleges that examination of his
body will lead to a fact which will disapprove the fact of commission of an offence by him, or
which will lead to commission of an offence by any other person against his body, the court
may order for medical examination of such accused person at the request of him (accused)
unless the court is satisfied that such a request is made for the purpose of defeating the
justice.
Other Rights
Section 55A of CrPC states that it shall be the duty of the person, under whose custody the
arrested person is to take reasonable care of the health and safety of the accused. The
arrested person is to be protected from cruel and inhuman treatment. Section 358 of CrPC
gives rights to the compensation to the arrested person who was groundlessly arrested.
Section 41A of CrPC states that the police officer may give the notice to a person suspected
of committing a cognizable offence to appear before him at such date and place. Section 46
of CrPC prescribes the mode of the arrest. i.e submission to custody, touching the body
physically, or to a body. The police officer should not cause death to the person while
making an arrest unless the arrestee is charged with an offence punishable with death or
life imprisonment. Section 49 of CrPC states that the police officer should not be more
restrained than is necessary for the escape. Restraining or detention without an arrest is
illegal.
In D.K Basu vs State of West Bengal and others [8], this case is a landmark judgement
because it focuses “on the rights of the arrested person and it also obligates the police
officer to do certain activities”. The court also states that if the police officer fails to perform
his duty then he will be liable for contempt of court as well as for the departmental actions.
Such matter can be instituted in any High Court having the jurisdiction over the matter.
In spite of various efforts in protecting the accused from the torture and inhuman
treatment, there are still instances of custodial deaths and the police atrocities. So, the
Supreme court issued 9 guidelines for the protection of accused persons and the
amendment of various sections of CrPC:- Section 41B– The police officer who is making an
investigation must bear visible, clear and accurate badge in which the name of the police
officer along with his designation is clearly mentioned. The police officer making an arrest
must prepare a cash memo containing a date and time of arrest which should be attested
by at least one member who can be his family member or any respectable person of a
locality. The cash memo should be countersigned by the arrested person. Section 41D:- The
arrested person is entitled to have a right to have one friend, or relative or any other
person who is having interest in him informed about his arrest. The arrestee must be
informed about his right to have someone informed about his right immediately when he is
put under custody or is being detained.
Entry is to be made in the diary which shall disclose the information relating to the
arrested person and it shall also include the name of the next friend to whom information
regarding the arrest is made. It also includes the name and the particulars of the police
officers under whose custody the arrestee is. An examination is to be conducted at the
request of the arrestee and the major and minor injuries if any found on the body must
be recorded. The inspection memo must be signed by the police officials and the arrested
person.
The arrestee has the right to meet his lawyer during and throughout the interrogation.
Copies of all documentation are to be sent to the Magistrate for his record. It also
includes a memo of the arrest.
Section 41C:- The court ordered for the establishment of state and district headquarters,
the police control room where the police officer making an arrest shall inform within 12
hours of arrest and it needs to be displayed on the conspicuous board.
Provision of bail under the code (436-450)
What is bail ?
The term ‘bail’ means a kind of security or bond which is given to release a person from
prison. It is a pro tem release of a criminal before his trial begins. The term ’bail’ is not
defined anywhere in the Criminal Procedure Code, 1973, however, the terms ‘bailable
offense’ and ’non-bailable offense’ are defined in Section 2(a) of Cr.P.C.
Evolution of the concept
As mentioned earlier, the concept was first introduced in England. The judges in England
used to travel from place to place to hear the cases which took place from session to
session. During this, the prisoners would face a hard time because of the unhygienic prison
conditions. So the system of bail was introduced to release the prisoners awaiting trial.
Later on, the Charter of Rights, the Magna Carta was introduced in the year 1215, which
gave the right to the citizens, which stated that a man can not be convicted until he has
faced the trial. The offenses were divided into bailable and non-bailable, back in 1275 by
the statute of Westminster.The Habeas Corpus Act came in the year 1679, according to
which the magistrate can release the prisoners by taking some sort of surety. The English
Bill of Rights introduced in the year 1689 provided a shield against the excessively high
amount of bail. Currently, the Bail Act of 1976 is being followed in England.
Talking about the United States, the Bill of Rights was subsumed in its Constitution in the
year 1791. It guaranteed all the provisions related to bail. In India, the provisions regarding
bail are incorporated in the Criminal Procedural Code,1973. The Sections 436 to 450 deals
with the grant of bail and bonds, in cases of criminal nature.
In which cases can you get your client bail?
Section 436
Section 436 of CrPC states that any person who is detained by a police officer, who doesn’t
have a warrant or that person is prepared in the custody of the police officer before the
court has granted him bail, shall be released on bail through a bond without any kind of
sureties. If the person has failed to follow the bail-bond then he can be refused bail. In
case, the person appears in the court, such refusal will be subject to the court and it can
call that person and impose penalty given under Section 446 of Cr.P.C.
Types of bail
Regular bail
When a person has been arrested and is kept in custody, then the person can be released
on a regular bail under Section 437 and Section 439 of the Cr.P.C.
Section 437
It states that, if any person is detained for the commission of a non-bailable offense,
without a warrant by a police officer, or when there are reasons to believe that there are
not sufficient grounds to prove that the person has committed any non-bailable offense,
then he can be released. This has to be followed in case he appears in any other court other
than the Court of Sessions or the High Court.
Even so, this person can not be granted bail if there are reasons to believe that he is guilty
of any offense punishable with a death sentence or life imprisonment or he has earlier been
convicted for an offense which was punished with punishments of the same nature.
Section 439
It gives special powers to the High Court and the Court of Sessions regarding the same. It
enables these courts to release the people on bail for the offenses specified in Section
437(3) of CrPC. The court can impose any condition which it thinks is necessary. It further
provides that any condition which the Magistrate imposes can be set aside if the High Court
has granted bail after giving notice to the public prosecutor. The bail, in this case, should be
provided in case the offense can be tried exclusively by the Court of Sessions and is
punishable with life imprisonment.
Interim bail
Before the procedure for granting a regular bail or anticipatory bail, interim bail is provided.
It is given for a temporary period. The reason behind this is that the granting of bail by the
High Court or the Court of Session requires documents to be sent by the lower courts,
which takes time. So, for the time being, the provision of interim bail is provided. The
Interim bail can be extended and if its period expires then the person to whom it is granted
has to be put in jail again.
Anticipatory bail
Section 438 of the Criminal Procedure Code, provides the direction for a person
apprehending arrest for any reason to believe.It provides that any person who anticipates
that he can be arrested in pursuance of any accusation of committing a non-bailable crime
can apply for the grant of anticipatory bail. Application has to be made to the High Court or
the Court of Sessions. According to this Section if a person is released then there are some
conditions that will follow- The person has to be present during the investigation whenever
required, The person can not induce any person to disable him to enclose the facts against
him during the proceedings, The person shall not leave India without the prior permission of
the court. It was further provided that if any person is arrested by a police officer without a
warrant then he can be given bail.
Circumstances under which bail is given by police

When the arrest is made without a warrant
Section 43 of the Cr.P.C. provides for the arrest of any accused by a private person. The
private person after the arrest should bring the convicted person to the police station or
hand him over to the police officer as soon as possible. The police will if it thinks that the
convicted person should be released, release him. Section 56 of the Cr.P.C. enables the
police officer to bail that person out under the provision contained in this Section. Section
169 of Cr.P.C. state that the bail can only be set when the investigation is made. Until then
this Section does not provide bail. Bail can be given by the officer-in-charge of the police
station or the police officer who is investigating. Section 170 of Cr.P.C. confers authority to
give bail, in the officer-in-charge of the police station in case the person is accused of
committing a non-bailable offense.
When the arrest is made with the issuance of the warrant
Section 73 of Cr.P.C. states that if the court is issuing the warrant under which it is
specified that if the person executes a bond in which he has provided sureties for appearing
before the court when the court specifies, then the police officer to whom the warrant is
issued will be allowed to give bail to the person. According to Section 81 of Cr.P.C. and
Section 82 of Cr.P.C., it is specified that if the arrest is made in the district, the police officer
other than District Superintendent of Police or the Commissioner of Police can release the
accused from custody, but in case the arrest is made out of such district then the District
Superintendent of Police or the Commissioner of Police in the area of arrest can release the
convicted.
Types of bail
In Gurbaksh Singh Sibbia v. State of Punjab the Supreme Court held that:- “The distinction
between an ordinary order of bail and an order of anticipatory bail is that whereas the
former is granted after arrest and therefore means release from the custody of the police,
the latter is granted in anticipation of arrest and is therefore effective at the very moment
of arrest. Police custody is an inevitable concomitant of arrest for non-bailable offences. An
order of anticipatory bail constitutes, so to say, an insurance against police custody
following arrest for offence or offences in respect of which the order is issued. In other
words, unlike a post-arrest order of bail, it is a pre-arrest legal process which directs
that if the person in whose favor it is issued is thereafter arrested on the accusation in
respect of which the direction is issued, he shall be released on bail.
Procedure of bail
Cases in which bail may be granted (whether release on bail is mandatory?)
In the case of bailable offence it is mandatory to grant bail to the arrested person and in
case of non-bailable offence it depends upon the discretion of the court. Section 436 of the
code talks about the cases in which bail can be taken and section 437 of the code talks
about the cases in which the bail may be taken in case of non-bailable cases.
Cases in which bail to be taken (section 436 of CR.PC)
In this case, if a person who is not guilty of any non-bailable offence and gets arrested
without a warrant by the police authority and is prepared to give bail, then it is the duty of
the police authorities to release him. The person arrested may be released on the bond
without submitting any sureties.
Introduction to CRPC
Why do we need Criminal Procedure Law?

Anyone who has a rudimentary knowledge of criminal law will know that it deals with what
amounts to an offence and what are the penalties associated with such offences. However,
the nature of most criminal punishment is such that it confines the individual liberty of a
person. Imprisonment, if illegal, violates some of the most basic freedoms and rights
associated with a democracy. Thus, we need a law that sets the state’s machinery running
with respect to enforcing law and order and imparting justice, and regulates the procedure
followed by these institutions.The Criminal procedure code refers to the working of these
institutions for the entire time period between when a crime has been committed until the
time the sentence against the crime is passed and the case is closed. It refers to the
machinery to be adopted by the State when a violation of the penal law, i.e., offence under
the Indian Penal Code, has been detected or reported. It also lays down the principles and
procedure that must be followed while prosecuting and adjudicating other claims. The
investigation, inquiry and trial of the other offences are also governed by these provisions,
subject to any other law that may be in force which regulates the manner of investigation,
inquiry or trial of the matter.
What is an Offence?
An offence is a transgression of the law, by action or omission. That means there may be
some cases where the law requires you to abstain or refrain from performing a particular
act. There may also be cases where the law requires you to take a positive action, failing
which you may be held liable for the offence
Civil offences are against private persons (individuals like you and me) but criminal offences
are against the State. The State, represented by the Prosecutor, will argue the case against
the defendant. So now, the prosecutor will make the case against the suspect, by
submitting the issue sheet (pleadings) and the necessary evidence.
Types of Criminal Offences:

Bailable offence and Non-bailable offence
Cognizable and Non-Cognizable offence
Functionaries under crpc

There are various functionaries under the Code of Criminal Procedure,1973 who help to
regulate the various provisions of the code. The functionaries are essential for the proper
functioning of the code. The various functionaries mentioned under the code are the Police,
Public Prosecutors, Assistant Public Prosecutors, Additional Prosecutors, Prison authorities
and the Defence counsel. The powers and functions of the functionaries are clearly
mentioned in the code.
Hierarchy of court ( section 6-23)

The setup of criminal courts in India is of 2 types i.e. District and Metropolitan areas.
District
The setup of criminal courts in district areas is at 3 levels: –
At the lower level of the judiciary the courts are called courts of Judicial Magistrate which
are of 3 types: –
Judicial magistrate
Judicial magistrate second class
Special magistrate court
At the middle level of the judiciary, the courts at the sessions level include: –
Court of sessions
Additional courts of sessions
Assistant courts of sessions
Special courts
At the higher level of the judiciary, there are the High Court and Supreme Court.
Metropolitan areas
The courts at the session’s level are referred to as metropolitan courts and they are of 2
types: – Metropolitan magistrate courts and Special Metropolitan Magistrate
Chief Judicial Magistrate/Chief Metropolitan Magistrate exercises supervisory authority or

administrative authority of all the magistrates in sessions/division or metropolitan areas.
Classes of criminal courts
Section 6 of the Cr.P.C provides for the classes of criminal courts in every State apart from
the High Courts and the Supreme Court, namely –
Court of Session
Judicial Magistrates of the first class and, Metropolitan Magistrates in any metropolitan
areas
Judicial Magistrates of the second class; and
Executive Magistrates
Hierarchy of Criminal Courts
The hierarchy of the Criminal Courts in India can be understood through the following chart:
The Supreme Court of India – The Supreme Court Of India being the apex court of India
was established under Article 124 of the Constitution of India.
The High Courts – Article 141 of the Constitution Of India governs the High Courts and
the High Courts are bound by the judgment of the Apex Court.
Lower Courts of India have been classified as follows:
Metropolitan Courts
Chief Metropolitan Magistrate
First Class Metropolitan Magistrate
District Courts
Sessions Court
First Class Judicial Magistrate
Second Class Judicial Magistrate
Separation of Judiciary from the Executive
The Code under Section 3(4) separates the judiciary from the executive and states that,
subject to the provisions of the Code:
Judicial Magistrate shall exercise the functions relating to matters in which

appreciation or shifting of evidence is involved or which involve the formulation of any
decision by which any person is exposed to a penalty or punishment or detention in
custody, inquiry or trial.
Executive Magistrate shall exercise the functions regarding the matters which are
executive or administrative in nature, for example, the granting or suspension or
cancellation of a license, withdrawing from prosecution or sanctioning a prosecution.
Court of Session
Section 9 of the Cr.PC empowers the State Government to establish the Sessions Court and
such court would be presided over by a Judge appointed by the High Court. The Additional
and Assistant Sessions Judges are also appointed by the High Court to exercise jurisdiction
in the Court of Session. The Sessions Court ordinarily sits at such place or places as ordered
by the High Court, but if in a case, the Court of Sessions decides to cater to the general
convenience of the parties and witnesses, then, it may, with the consent of the prosecution
and the accused preside its sittings at any other place. As per Section 10 of the Cr.P.C, the
assistant sessions judges are answerable to the sessions judge.
Court of Judicial Magistrate
Section 11 of the Cr.P.C states that in every district (not being a metropolitan area), the
State Government after consultation with the High Court has the power to establish courts
of Judicial Magistrates of the first and second classes. If the High Court is of the opinion
that it is necessary to confer the powers of a Judicial Magistrate of the first or second class
on any member of the Judicial Service functioning as a Judge in a civil court, then the High
Court shall do the same.
Chief Judicial Magistrate and Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate
As per Section 12 of the Code in every district other than metropolitan areas, Judicial
Magistrate of the first class shall be appointed as the Chief Judicial Magistrate. The High
Court is also empowered to designate a Judicial Magistrate of First Class as Additional CJM
and by such designation, the Magistrate shall be empowered to exercise all or any of the
powers of a Chief Judicial Magistrate.
Sub-Divisional Judicial Magistrate
In a sub-division, the judicial magistrate of the first class may be designated as the Sub-
divisional Judicial Magistrate. Such magistrate shall be subordinate to the Chief Judicial
Magistrate and will thus work under its control. Further, the Sub-divisional Judicial
Magistrate shall control and supervise the work of the Judicial Magistrates (except the
Additional CJM) in that subdivision.
Special Judicial Magistrates
By Section 13 the High Court is empowered to confer upon any person who holds or has
held any post under the Government, the powers conferred or conferred by or under this
Code on a Judicial Magistrate of first or second class. Such Magistrates shall be called
Special Judicial Magistrate and shall be appointed for a term not exceeding one year at a
time. In relation to any metropolitan area outside the local jurisdiction of a Special Judicial
Magistrate, he may be empowered by the High Court to exercise the powers of a
Metropolitan Magistrate.
Local Jurisdiction of Judicial Magistrate
According to Section 14, the Chief Judicial Magistrate shall define the local limits of the
areas within which the Magistrates appointed under Section 11 or under Section 13 may
exercise all or any of the powers with which they may be vested under this Code. The
Special Judicial Magistrate may hold its sitting at any place within the local area for which it
is established.
The jurisdiction in case of Juveniles (Section 27)– This section directs that a juvenile
(person below the age of 16) can not be given a death penalty or a punishment of
imprisonment for life. Chief Judicial Magistrate or any other Court specially empowered
under the Children Act, 1960 (60 of 1960) tries such type of cases.
Subordination of judicial magistrate
Section 15(1) provides that a Sessions Judge shall be superior to the Chief Judicial
Magistrate and the Chief Judicial Magistrate shall be superior to the other Judicial
Magistrate. This can be clearly understood by the above-mentioned diagram explaining the
hierarchy of courts.
Courts of Metropolitan Magistrate
They are established in every metropolitan area. The presiding officers shall be appointed
by the High Court. The jurisdiction and powers of such Metropolitan Magistrates shall
extend throughout the metropolitan area. The High Court shall appoint Metropolitan
Magistrate as the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate.
Special metropolitan magistrates
The High Court may confer upon Special Metropolitan Magistrates the powers which a
Metropolitan Magistrate can exercise in respect to particular cases or particular classes of
cases. Such Special Metropolitan Magistrates shall be appointed for such term, not
exceeding one year at a time.
The Special Metropolitan Magistrate may be empowered by the High Court or the State
Government to exercise the powers of a Judicial Magistrate of the first class in any area
outside the metropolitan area.
Subordination of Metropolitan Magistrate
Section 19 of the Code provides that the Sessions Judge shall be superior to the Additional
Chief Metropolitan Magistrate and Chief Metropolitan Magistrate and other Metropolitan
Magistrates shall be subordinate to the CMM.
The Chief Metropolitan Magistrate has the power to give special orders or make rules
regarding the distribution of business among the Metropolitan Magistrates and allocation of
business to an Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate.
As per Section 20, in every district and in every metropolitan area, Executive Magistrates
shall be appointed by the State Government and one of them shall be appointed as the
District Magistrate. An Executive Magistrate shall be appointed as an Additional District
Magistrate and such Magistrate shall have such powers of a District Magistrate under the
Code.
As executive magistrates are supposed to execute administrative functions they were

neither given power to try accused nor pass verdicts. They are mainly concerned with
administrative functions. The executive magistrates have the power to determine the
amount of bail according to the provisions of the warrant issued against the accused, pass
orders restraining people from committing a particular act or preventing persons from
entering an area (Section 144 Cr.P.C), they are the authority to whom people are taken to
when they are arrested outside the local jurisdiction, the executive magistrates are the only
one with the power to disperse a crowd or an unlawful assembly, further, they are
authorized to use force while doing the same according to the gravity and requirements of
the situation. Executive Magistrates are assisted by the police while executing their
functions.
As per Section 21, Special Executive Magistrates shall be appointed by the State
Government for particular areas or for the performance of particular functions.
Local jurisdiction of the executive magistrate
Section 22 of the CrPC empowers the District Court to define the areas under which the
Executive Magistrates may use all or any of the powers which are exercisable by them
under this code but under some exceptions, the powers and jurisdiction of such Magistrate
shall extend throughout the district.
Subordination of executive magistrate
As per Section 23, the Executive Magistrates would be subordinate to the District Magistrate
however Additional District Magistrate shall not be subordinate to the District Magistrate.
Every Executive Magistrate but, the Sub-divisional Magistrate shall be subordinate to the
Sub-divisional Magistrate.
The executive magistrates shall follow the rules or special orders given by the district
magistrate, regarding the distribution of business among them. The district magistrate also
has the powers to make rules or special orders relating to the allocation of business to an
Additional District Magistrate.
Police as functionary (sec 36)

There is no provision in the code that creates the police or police officers. It assumes the
existence of police and arms them with various responsibilities and powers.
Organisation
The Police Act, 1861 establishes the police force. The Act says that “the police force is an
instrument for the detection of crime and its prevention.” The Director-General of Police is
vested with the overall administration of police in an entire state, however, in a district,
under the general control and directions of District Magistrate, administration of police is
done by DSP (District Superintendent of Police).
A certificate is provided to every police officer and by virtue of such certificate, he is vested
with the functions, privileges and powers of a police officer. Such certificate will cease to be
in effect once he/she is no longer a police officer.
The Code confers upon the police officers certain powers such as the power to investigate,
search and seizure, make an arrest and investigate the members enrolled as police officers.
Extensive powers are conferred to the officer in charge of a police station.
Public prosecutor (section 24 to 25 A)

A Public Prosecutor is considered as the agent of the state to represent the interest of
common people in the criminal justice system. The prosecution of the accused is the duty of
the state but not individually the duty of the aggrieved party. They are appointed in almost
all countries. The Public Prosecutor is defined in Section 24 of Cr.P.C. They serve as the
basic principle of Rule of Law i.e. auld alteram partem (no person shall be condemned
unheard).
Section 2(u) of the Code of Criminal Procedure defines Public Prosecutor. “A person who is
appointed under Section 24 of CrPC and it also includes any person who is acting under the
directions of the Public Prosecutor.
Functions
The functions of the Public Prosecutor differ according to their designation.
Public Prosecutor- supervise the function exercised by the Additional Public Prosecutor in
Session Court and High Court.
Chief Prosecutor- supervise the functions exercised by Assistant Public Prosecutor in

Metropolitan Magistrate Court.
Additional Prosecutor- conduct criminal proceedings in the Session Court.
Assistant Public Prosecutor- they examine the charge sheet prepared by agencies and
submit the acquittal or discharge. They also are responsible for the evaluation of
evidence and filing revisions petitions. They also conduct the criminal proceedings in the
Court of Metropolitan Magistrate.
Director of Prosecution- it is the head office. They exercise the overall control and
supervision of officers of Directorate. They also look after the Account Branches.
The objective of establishing a Directorate of Public Prosecutors is to supervise and

scrutinise the functions relating to various prosecution agencies at Assistant Session level
and Session level except at High Court.
Reasons for the Appointment of Public Prosecutor
Whenever any crime is committed against a group or individual, it is assumed that it has
been committed against society. It is the duty of the state to provide justice to any group of
society or person who is affected by the crime. In India, it is necessary that the criminal
justice system should function within the limits of the Indian Constitution, which means that
it is necessary for the Public Prosecutor to act in accordance with the principles of:
Equality before law
Protection against double jeopardy
Protection against self-incrimination
Protection against ex-post law
Right to life and personal liberty except procedure established by law
Presumption of innocence until proven guilty
Arrest and detention must be in accordance with the provisions of Cr.P.C.
Equal protection of laws
Speedy trial
Prohibition of discrimination
Right of accused to remain silent
Defence council as a functionary
In most of the cases an accused person is a layman and is not aware of the technicalities of
law, therefore, as per Section 303, an accused person shall have a right to be defended by
a counsel of his own choice. As the accused or his family employs the pleader to defend the
accused against the alleged charges, such a pleader is not a government employee. For
ensuring a just and fair trial it is essential that a qualified legal practitioner presents the
matter on behalf of the accused. Therefore, Section 304 provides that if the accused does
not have sufficient means to hire a counsel, a pleader shall be assigned to him by the court
at the state’s expense. There are various schemes through which an accused who does not
have sufficient means to hire a pleader can get free legal aid, such as the Legal Aid Scheme
of State, Legal Aid and Service Board, Supreme Court Senior Advocates Free Legal Aid
society and Bar Association. The Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987 provides needy people
with free legal aid.
Basic concepts and definition
Bailable and non-bailable offences [2(a)]

Bailable offence is one where the defendant (the one who is defending himself in a
criminal case) may be able to secure his release upon the payment of bail. These are the
cases where the grant of bail is a matter of course and right. If a person is held under a
non-bailable presence, he cannot claim the grant of bail as a matter of right. But the law
gives special consideration in favor of granting bail where the accused is under sixteen, a
woman, sick or inﬁrm, or if the court is satisfied that it is just and proper for any other
special reason to give rather than refuse bail.
Cognizable and non-cognizable offences (154)

Offences can be categorized into various types, but we will particularly focus on two :
Cognizable Offences and Non-cognizable Offences. Under Cr.P.C., Cognizable Offence is
discussed under Section 154. Section 2(c) of Cr.P.C. defines it to be an offence in which the
police officer can arrest the convict without a warrant and can start investigation without
the due permission of the court. These are the offences that are usually very serious and
generally heinous in nature. For example: Rape, murder, kidnapping, dowry death etc. All
cognizable offences are non-bailable due to their serious and heinous nature. Section 2(1)
of Cr.P.C. defines Non-cognizable Offence. It refers to it as an offence for which a police
officer has no authority to arrest without a warrant. These are the offences that are not
serious or usually petty in nature. For example: assault, cheating, forgery, defamation etc.
Non-cognizable offences are usually bailable because of their non serious nature.
Section 154
Information in cognizable cases.
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 signed 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.
A copy of the information as recorded under sub-section (1) shall be given forthwith, free
of cost, to the informant.
Any person aggrieved by a refusal on the part of an officer in charge of a police station to
record the information referred to in subsection (1) may send the substance of such
information, in writing and by post, to the Superintendent of Police concerned who, if
satisfied that such information discloses the commission of a cognizable offence, shall
either investigate the case himself or direct an investigation to be made by any police
officer subordinate to him, in the manner provided by this Code, and such officer shall
have all the powers of an officer in charge of the police station in relation to that offence.
With reference to the particular section, an officer can register an F.I.R. and take cognizance
of and arrest a suspect without seeking court’s prior approval. If she/he has a “reason to
believe” that a person has committed the offence and is satisfied that arrest is a necessary
step. Then within 24 hours of arrest, the officer must get the detention ratified by the
concerned judicial magistrate. Police officers also have a chance to conduct a preliminary
investigation before registering the F.I.R. to cross check the facts but the liability lies totally
upon him for the same. This is because if the Police Officer doesn’t register an F.I.R. at the
moment the information is received, and there is any mishappening because he was not
sure of the serious offence like murder taking place and someone loses his life will be a
careless mistake.
Charge [2(b)]
Section 2(b) of the Criminal Procedure Code defines charge as any head of a charge when
the charge contains more heads than one. The legal definition mentioned in the code is not
inclusive enough for a layman to decipher. However, the definition could simply be
interpreted to mean as an “accusation”. It is the concrete accusation as recognised by the
Magistrate or the Court, based on the prima facie evidence adduced against the accused.
Purpose of Charge
Under the Code of Criminal Procedure, an accused should be informed of the offence of
which he is charged. The basic purpose of the charge is to let the accused know of the
offence that he is charged with so that he can prepare his defence. The accused should be
informed of the charge against him at the very beginning. Every accused has the right to
know what the prosecution has against him. The underlying principle of the criminal law on
informing the accused of the charge against him is to provide an equal opportunity to each
and every individual to prepare his defence and avail justice. It must be noted that in case
of serious offences, the statute requires the charge to be reduced to writing precisely and
clearly and must be read to the accused and explained with precision and clarity.
Police report [173(2)]

Section 2(r) of CrPC talks about the expression ‘police report’, according to which a report is
forwarded by a police officer to a Magistrate under Section 173(2). The report should be in
the manner that is prescribed by the State Government as per the particulars mentioned in
clause (a) to (g) of sub-section(2) of Section 173. The police report submitted under this
section is called the End Report. If this report constitutes an attempt of a crime by an
accused person, that report is commonly called the “charge-sheet” or the “challan”.
The Magistrate can not interfere in any of his judicial capacity and as a court until he
receives the final report by the police officer as per Section 173. Also, there can be no
occasion for the Magistrate to make any judicial order about the police investigation as
stated in M.L. Sethi v. R.P. Kapur [AIR 1967 SC 528]. A Magistrate who has disposed of a
police report is competent to revise his order and require the “charge-sheet”. Where the
complainant and the accused filed complaints against each other, but there is no report filed
by the police in the court and statements in respect of the complaint made by the accused.
It was held to be a handicap to the accused in a proper projection of his defence and the
accused were set at liberty. The police “charge-sheet” correlates to the complaint made by
the private individual on which criminal proceedings are initiated. When the charge sheet is
sent, the initial stage of investigation along with the preparation. Upon the document
provided by the police, the Magistrate can take the offence into his consideration.When the
Sub-Inspector of police after making an investigation and examining as many as ten
witnesses referred in the case as “mistake of fact”, the Magistrate then by accepting the
report, orders to record it as a judicial order and that the case could not be re-opened by a
Police Inspector by filing a charge-sheet after re-investigation for the same.
Inquest report
The term ‘inquest’ has not been outrightly defined in the Code. The meaning of inquest is to
seek legal or judicial inquiry to ascertain the facts. According to the Black’s Law Dictionary,
the term ‘inquest’ means an inquiry conducted by the medical officers or sometimes with
the help of a jury into the manner of death of a person, who has died under suspicious
circumstances or has died in prison. The provisions relating to the inquest report are
covered under Chapter XII of the Code. An inquest report is made primarily to look into the
causes of unnatural death. In the case of unnatural death, the circumstances have to be
examined. The State owes a duty to its citizens to ensure their health and life. When a
crime is committed, it is committed against the State. In the circumstances of unnatural
death, it is the duty of the State to ascertain the cause of death and accordingly take
further measures. This is the purpose of an inquest report, to establish facts that can be
used to apprehend and punish the offender.
Types of Police Reports
Police reports are different according to the incidents. Types of police reports include:
Arrest reports
An arrest report often called an arrest record, describes allegations or charges against an
individual. Following the arrest of a suspect, mostly by a representative of the judge who
signed the arrest warrant, the arrest report contains a victim’s claims about a perpetrator
and all the information of the suspected crime found in the initial report of the incident.
Fingerprint details may also be included in the arrest reports and also included the bail
amount if the judge establishes.
Investigative reports
When a case is opened by filing a police report, an investigation process may be conducted
by a police investigator or another investigating officer. While the Right to Information Act
(RTI) makes certain police records accessible to the public, forensic reporting is not made
available in public so as not to hinder the prosecution of an accused suspect. Parties outside
the police service can conduct their own investigations, such as insurance companies and
private investigators. However, these allegations are not subject to an inquiry by the police.
Traffic reports A police traffic report states the violation made by a driver and offence
accepted by him and includes his personal details, name, license number, tag number, and
model number of the car.
Supplemental police reports
When a police report may be revised, an officer can request an additional report reflecting
the new information by updating or rectifying it. For the initial report, the reporting officer
can omit unintentionally any information or incorrectly write a typo in the report. In the
case of an accident occurred at night, any photographs taken by the officer at that time do
not clearly show the details of an accident. For this, the additional supplementary pages are
added to the initial report and mark as original report and no alteration can be done to the
initial report.
Witness reports
In police interviews with traffic accidents or crime witnesses, police officers record
statements on accounts of witnesses. Such witness accounts supplement the primary
incident or injury report but are usually conducted in different ways. A big blank area of a
witness form for handing out a report about a traffic accident or injury report is also
included in the original witness report. Often, a witness will compose their account with a
blank sheet of paper. In the case of an accident or injury, the witness reports shall be made
after a subsequent interview with the victim.
Administrative reports
Police officers and organisations in the corporate business relationship sector must maintain
such administrative records comparable with non-police businesses. Such reports can
include statistical details on detention, duties, budget items, and other things every day.
When a victim or some other member of the public asks for any details on the Right to
Information Act (RTI), such requests will be reported in an administrative report and made
available by a police department official.
Internal affairs reports
Law enforcement department’s check-and-balance accountability, an officer is often required

to submit an inquiry into internal affairs. Those inquiries are reported as complaints of
misconduct on internal affairs reports. Every allegation returns one of four findings:
sustained (the accusation is proven); unsustained (the accusation does not include
sufficient proof to support or disprove it); unfounded (the event did not occur or was not
based on facts uncovered by the investigation); or exonerated (the alleged incident did
occur in fact, but the action of the officer was considered to be reasonable and lawful).
Investigation [2(h)]
The term ‘investigation’ has been defined in Section 2(h) of the Code of Criminal procedure,
Investigation includes all the proceedings under this Code for the collection of evidence
conducted by a police officer or by any person (other than a Magistrate) who is authorised
by a Magistrate in this behalf. The investigation of an offence consists of:
Proceeding to the spot.
Ascertainment of facts and circumstances of the case.
Discovery and arrest of the suspect.
Collection of evidence which may include:
Examination of persons concerned and reducing their statement to writing.
Search and seizure of places and things respectively considered necessary.
Rupan Deol Bajaj v. K.P.S. Gill (AIR 1996 SC 309) If the magistrate evaluates that the
accused person was wrongly released, then he has the power to take cognizance of the case
and can further orders to put the accused on trial for the same offence. But if he decides to
drop the case and there is a ‘protest petition’ the complainant has filed, the magistrate is
entitled to initiate action on the same. In this case, a senior police officer slapped a senior
lady IAS officer on her posterior at a party in the presence of an elite gathering and the
Magistrate accepted the final report without giving reasons, submitted by the police in the
case initiated by the lady officer under the Section 354/509 of IPC. Therefore, the Supreme
Court set aside the order and restored the case directing the Magistrate to continue with the
case despite the criticisms made by the complainant under Section 210 of CrPC.
Inquiry [2(g)]
We can observe that often people get perplexed regarding the usage of inquiry and enquiry
which I will clear under this article; Enquiry means to ask a question, and inquiry is a formal
investigation, enquiry though follows under the same page but has a level of difference in
them. As discussed above, the inquiry is the process of seeking information from a person
who might give some relevant information about the matter in question. Inquiry is defined
under Section 2(g) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 referring to any inquiry other
than trial under this code, conducted by a Magistrate or a Court. A Trial in every case
initiates when the inquiry ends. The work of the police officer under the Code of Criminal
Procedure, 1973 cannot be termed as an inquiry but it is understood as investigation.
Section 159 of CrPC (Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973) explains an order given by the
magistrate or Court to make a preliminary inquiry in order to see whether the offence has
been committed and if so, who are the people involved in the same.
Procedure of inquiry
A brief to section 154
As we have observed in Section 154, that the police officer can only take action and
investigate in cases of cognizable offences. On the contrary, an order by a magistrate is
needed to the police officers in order to investigate non-cognizable offences.
Procedure of preliminary inquiry (Section 157)
Section 157 of CRPC deals with the procedure of preliminary inquiry which explains that
when certain information about an offence is received by the police officer and the
highlighting point of the offence is that it should be a cognizable offence, so if any
information regarding any cognizable offence is received by the police officer, he is
accountable to make the report of it and such report shall be sent to the magistrate of that
jurisdiction.
What is the need to send the report to the magistrate
There are certain reason why the report made by the police officer shall be sent to the
magistrate of the jurisdiction which are as follows:
As the district is under the magistrate, it is his responsibility to be aware of all the crime
being committed in the district and ensure speedy disposal of the same.
A magistrate can supervise the investigation and inquiries of the police officer.
If the magistrate finds that the investigation is not being held properly he can also give
directions so that the case can be disposed of easily and justice shall be rendered to all.
The magistrate after receiving the report shall take cognizance of the offence and work in
person or the police officer appoint an officer, not below the rank of State government
who may investigate, supervise, look up the facts and circumstances and arrest the
offender if necessary.
Trial
To further proceed with the various concepts associated with Trial in the criminal system in
India, we must learn with the very basic concept of trial. The term ‘trial’ basically means the
Court’s decision or a judicial judgement by the Court so as to decide the person’s guilt or
innocence. A trial is of a very crucial importance in a criminal case. Section 190 CrPC[v]
states those requirements that need to be accomplished before proceedings can be started
by the Magistrate, this statement basically means the power of the Magistrate to take
knowledge of a case. Section 204 of CrPC basically provides the Magistrate with the sole
power of either to take the case into consideration or to reject the case on some grounds.
This section also determines the stage whether a case can enter the stage of trial or not.
Types of Trial
Mainly, there are four types of trial:
Warrant Case- A warrant case associates itself to the case where the crimes punishable
with death, imprisonment for life or imprisonment for a term exceeding two years are
considered. Trial of warrant cases are further classified into two more types namely:
1. Cases instituted by a police report- A police report is basically a report which a

Magistrate receives from a police officer under Sec. 173. The police should send their
report as soon as they complete the investigation and the accused appears in front of a
Magistrate before starting the trial.
2. Cases established other than a police report- Here, no kind police report or investigation
is required. The Magistrate directly receives a complaint which is filed before him.
The sections from 225-237 of the Criminal Procedure Code basically deals with the warrant
cases by a Court of Session.
Sessions case- These are the cases where the offences subjected to punishment by law is
death, life imprisonment for a term more than seven years, in such cases trial has to be
dealt in a Sessions court after the case has already been forwarded by a Magistrate to
the Court or after the commission of the crime. Sections as mentioned in the CrPC
starting from 238-250 handle the warrant cases by Magistrates. As decided in case of the
Inspector of Police vs R. Jeeva Jothi And Ors., the Magistrate showed some irregularities
while conducting an enquiry of a case after a final report was submitted by the inspector
of police to him. As mentioned in the CrPC, that when a Magistrate accepts a police
report u/s 190(b), the Magistrate should take cognizance of that particular offence also.
Under section 209, a Magistrate when he has noted that the case can be exercised only
in the Court of Sessions, it is compulsory for him that the case should be passed on to
the correct authorities who have proper jurisdiction over the case after considering the
procedure and formalities as mentioned under section 207 and 208. In the present case,
the Magistrate considered all the materials and documents related to the case and
discharged the accused for the offences mentioned under section 307 and 450 of IPC,
which a Magistrate is not allowed to do so and carries no power for the same. And after
the deletion, the Magistrate took the case into his file and started a trial which is clearly
prohibited under the law.
The Madras High Court in this case questioned the competency of the Magistrate and also
stated that the decisions taken and the procedure adopted by the Magistrate were unlawful
and wrong in nature and held that without further delaying the case, it should be sent to
the Court of Sessions with immediate effect.
Summons cases- These are the cases where those crimes where the punishment for the
offence is less than two years falls under the category of the summons cases, further in
these cases there is no requirement of framing the charges. The Court upon finding these
cases issues a ‘notice’ as a material for the accusation and then sends it to the accused.
If there is any kind of possibility that the charges in summons cases are such that they
might be converted into a warrant case in the eyes of the Magistrate for serving the
justice.
In the case of Gulabjeet Singh & Ors vs Ravel Singh, the issue was whether Section 258 can
apply to the proceedings started under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act[vii]?
Section 258 simply states the proceedings can only be stopped when the cases are filed
other than a complaint, but when the prosecution has already established by the State,
then this section would not be applicable and further elaborated that in such cases where a
private party has filed a complaint then Sec. 258 wouldn’t be applicable. The petition was
dismissed by the High Court of Himachal Pradesh.
Summary cases- Basically, summary trials are those kinds of trials where speedy justice
has to be given which means those cases which are to be disposed of speedily and the
process of these cases is quite simplified. One thing which is important to note here is
that only small offences are taken as a part of the summary cases, cases which are
complicated in nature and are quite big are reserved for summons or warrant trials. With
this type of trial, one can easily point out the concept of ‘justice delayed is justice
denied’. A very important procedural part associated with these kinds of trials is that in
summary trials only proceedings are recorded and as such no big part of proceedings are
made. In summary trials the components related to evidences and the disposition are
simply recorded in a brief manner while in regular trials, the evidences and all the
substances related to the cases are carefully considered.[viii]
Summons and warrants case [2(w), 2(x)]

“Summon” is a document that commands a person to whom it is served to appear before
the court and to answer the complaint made against him. Summon is issued by the
Magistrate to the accused under section 204(1) (a) of Cr.P.C, 1973. “Summon case” means
a case relating to an offence, not being a warrant case.
Summon cases can be referred from the definition of the warrant case i.e., offences
punishable with death, imprisonment for life and imprisonment for the terms exceeding two
years called as warrant cases. So summon cases are those in which punishment will not
exceed imprisonment for two years. It can be said that summon cases are not of serious
nature, so it needs to be decided speedily, without dispensing the requisites of the fair trial.
The procedure to deal with such matters is provided in section 251 to 259 of Cr.P.C, 1973
which is not as serious/formal as other trials (Session trial, warrant case instituted on the
police report and warrant cases instituted otherwise than on police report).
Arrest, bail and pre-trial proceeding
Arrest and right of an arrested person [50(1), 50(2),

57, 303, 304]
Section 50 of CrPC says that every police officer or any other person who is authorised to
arrest a person without a warrant should inform the arrested person about the offence for
which he is arrested and other grounds for such an arrest. It is the duty of the police officer
and he cannot refuse it. Section 50A of CrPC obligates a person making an arrest to inform
of the arrest to any of his friends or relative or any other person in his interest. The police
officer should inform the arrested person that he has a right to information about his arrest
to the nominated person as soon as he is put under custody.
Section 55 of CrPC states that whenever a police officer has authorised his subordinate to
arrest any person without a warrant, the subordinate officer needs to notify the person
arrested of the substance of written order that is given, specifying the offence and other
grounds of arrest. Section 75 of CrPC says that the police officer(or any other officer)
executing the warrant should notify the substance to the person arrested and show him a
warrant if it required. Article 22(1)of the Constitution of India also states that no police
officer should arrest any person without informing the ground of arrest.
Right to be produced before the Magistrate without

unnecessary delay
Section 55 of CrPC states that a police officer making an arrest without a warrant should
produce the arrested person without unnecessary delay before the Magistrate having
jurisdiction or a police officer in charge of the police station, subject to the conditions of the
arrest. Section 76 of CrPC states that the police officer executing a warrant of arrest should
produce the arrested person before the court before which he is required by law to produce
the person. It states that the person should be produced within 24 hours of arrest. While
calculating the time period of 24 hours, it must exclude the time which is required for the
journey from the place of detaining to the Magistrate Court. Article 22(2) of the Constitution
states that the police officer making an arrest should be produced before the Magistrate
within 24 hours of arrest. If the police officer fails to produce before the Magistrate within
24 hours, he will be liable for wrongful detention.
Rights to be released on Bail

Subsection(2) of Section 50 of CrPC states that when a police officer arrests any person
without a warrant for an offence other than non-cognizable offence; he shall inform him
that he has a right to release on bail and to make an arrangement for the sureties on his
behalf.
Rights to a fair trial

Any provision related to the right to a fair trial is not given in CrPC, but such rights can be
derived from the Constitution and the various judgements. Article 14 of the Constitution of
states that ”all persons are equal before the law”. It means that all the parties to the
dispute should be given equal treatment.
Right to consult a lawyer

Section 41D of CrPC states the right of the prisoners to consult his lawyer during
interrogation.
Article 22(1) of the constitution states that the arrested person has a right to appoint a
lawyer and be defended by the pleader of his choice.
Section 303 of CrPC states that when a person is alleged to have committed an offence
before the criminal court or against whom proceedings have been initiated, has a right to
be defended by a legal practitioner of his choice.
Right to free Legal Aid

Section 304 of CrPC states that when a trial is conducted before the Court of Session, and
the accused is not represented by the legal practitioner, or when it appears that the accused
has no sufficient means to appoint a pleader then, the court may appoint a pleader for his
defence at the expense of the State. Article 39A obligates a state to provide free legal aid
for the purpose of securing justice. This right has also been explicitly given in the case of
Khatri (II) VS State of Bihar. The court held that “to provide free legal aid to the indigent
accused person”. It is also given at the time when the accused is produced before the
Magistrate for the first time along with time commences. The right of the accused person
cannot be denied even when the accused fails to apply for it. If the state fails to provide
legal aid to the indigent accused person, then it will vitiate the whole trial as void. In the
case of Sukh Das vs Union Territory of Arunachal Pradesh [6], the court held:- “The right of
an indigent accused cannot be denied even when the accused fails to apply for it”. If the
state fails to provide legal aid to the indigent accused person it will vitiate the whole trial as
void.
Right to keep silence

Right to keep silent is not recognized in any law but it can derive its authority from CrPC
and the Indian Evidence Act. This right is mainly related to the statement and confession
made in the court. Whenever a confession or a statement is made in the court, it is the duty
of the Magistrate to find that such a statement or the confession was made voluntarily or
not. No arrested person can be compelled to speak anything in the court. Article 20 (2)
states that no person can be compelled to be a witness against himself. This is the principle
of self- incrimination. This principle was reiterated by the case of Nandini Satpathy vs P.L
Dani. It stated, “No one can force any person to give any statement or to answer questions
and the accused person has a right to keep silent during the process of interrogation”.
Right to be Examined by the medical practitioner

Section 54 of CrPC states that when the arrested person alleges that examination of his
body will lead to a fact which will disapprove the fact of commission of an offence by him, or
which will lead to commission of an offence by any other person against his body, the court
may order for medical examination of such accused person at the request of him (accused)
unless the court is satisfied that such a request is made for the purpose of defeating the
justice.
Other Rights
Section 55A of CrPC states that it shall be the duty of the person, under whose custody the
arrested person is to take reasonable care of the health and safety of the accused. The
arrested person is to be protected from cruel and inhuman treatment. Section 358 of CrPC
gives rights to the compensation to the arrested person who was groundlessly arrested.
Section 41A of CrPC states that the police officer may give the notice to a person suspected
of committing a cognizable offence to appear before him at such date and place. Section 46
of CrPC prescribes the mode of the arrest. i.e submission to custody, touching the body
physically, or to a body. The police officer should not cause death to the person while
making an arrest unless the arrestee is charged with an offence punishable with death or
life imprisonment. Section 49 of CrPC states that the police officer should not be more
restrained than is necessary for the escape. Restraining or detention without an arrest is
illegal.
In D.K Basu vs State of West Bengal and others [8], this case is a landmark judgement
because it focuses “on the rights of the arrested person and it also obligates the police
officer to do certain activities”. The court also states that if the police officer fails to perform
his duty then he will be liable for contempt of court as well as for the departmental actions.
Such matter can be instituted in any High Court having the jurisdiction over the matter.
In spite of various efforts in protecting the accused from the torture and inhuman
treatment, there are still instances of custodial deaths and the police atrocities. So, the
Supreme court issued 9 guidelines for the protection of accused persons and the
amendment of various sections of CrPC:- Section 41B– The police officer who is making an
investigation must bear visible, clear and accurate badge in which the name of the police
officer along with his designation is clearly mentioned. The police officer making an arrest
must prepare a cash memo containing a date and time of arrest which should be attested
by at least one member who can be his family member or any respectable person of a
locality. The cash memo should be countersigned by the arrested person. Section 41D:- The
arrested person is entitled to have a right to have one friend, or relative or any other
person who is having interest in him informed about his arrest. The arrestee must be
informed about his right to have someone informed about his right immediately when he is
put under custody or is being detained.
Entry is to be made in the diary which shall disclose the information relating to the
arrested person and it shall also include the name of the next friend to whom information
regarding the arrest is made. It also includes the name and the particulars of the police
officers under whose custody the arrestee is. An examination is to be conducted at the
request of the arrestee and the major and minor injuries if any found on the body must
be recorded. The inspection memo must be signed by the police officials and the arrested
person.
The arrestee has the right to meet his lawyer during and throughout the interrogation.
Copies of all documentation are to be sent to the Magistrate for his record. It also
includes a memo of the arrest.
Section 41C:- The court ordered for the establishment of state and district headquarters,
the police control room where the police officer making an arrest shall inform within 12
hours of arrest and it needs to be displayed on the conspicuous board.
Provision of bail under the code (436-450)
What is bail ?
The term ‘bail’ means a kind of security or bond which is given to release a person from
prison. It is a pro tem release of a criminal before his trial begins. The term ’bail’ is not
defined anywhere in the Criminal Procedure Code, 1973, however, the terms ‘bailable
offense’ and ’non-bailable offense’ are defined in Section 2(a) of Cr.P.C.
Evolution of the concept
As mentioned earlier, the concept was first introduced in England. The judges in England
used to travel from place to place to hear the cases which took place from session to
session. During this, the prisoners would face a hard time because of the unhygienic prison
conditions. So the system of bail was introduced to release the prisoners awaiting trial.
Later on, the Charter of Rights, the Magna Carta was introduced in the year 1215, which
gave the right to the citizens, which stated that a man can not be convicted until he has
faced the trial. The offenses were divided into bailable and non-bailable, back in 1275 by
the statute of Westminster.The Habeas Corpus Act came in the year 1679, according to
which the magistrate can release the prisoners by taking some sort of surety. The English
Bill of Rights introduced in the year 1689 provided a shield against the excessively high
amount of bail. Currently, the Bail Act of 1976 is being followed in England.
Talking about the United States, the Bill of Rights was subsumed in its Constitution in the
year 1791. It guaranteed all the provisions related to bail. In India, the provisions regarding
bail are incorporated in the Criminal Procedural Code,1973. The Sections 436 to 450 deals
with the grant of bail and bonds, in cases of criminal nature.
In which cases can you get your client bail?
Section 436
Section 436 of CrPC states that any person who is detained by a police officer, who doesn’t
have a warrant or that person is prepared in the custody of the police officer before the
court has granted him bail, shall be released on bail through a bond without any kind of
sureties. If the person has failed to follow the bail-bond then he can be refused bail. In
case, the person appears in the court, such refusal will be subject to the court and it can
call that person and impose penalty given under Section 446 of Cr.P.C.
Types of bail
Regular bail
When a person has been arrested and is kept in custody, then the person can be released
on a regular bail under Section 437 and Section 439 of the Cr.P.C.
Section 437
It states that, if any person is detained for the commission of a non-bailable offense,
without a warrant by a police officer, or when there are reasons to believe that there are
not sufficient grounds to prove that the person has committed any non-bailable offense,
then he can be released. This has to be followed in case he appears in any other court other
than the Court of Sessions or the High Court.
Even so, this person can not be granted bail if there are reasons to believe that he is guilty
of any offense punishable with a death sentence or life imprisonment or he has earlier been
convicted for an offense which was punished with punishments of the same nature.
Section 439
It gives special powers to the High Court and the Court of Sessions regarding the same. It
enables these courts to release the people on bail for the offenses specified in Section
437(3) of CrPC. The court can impose any condition which it thinks is necessary. It further
provides that any condition which the Magistrate imposes can be set aside if the High Court
has granted bail after giving notice to the public prosecutor. The bail, in this case, should be
provided in case the offense can be tried exclusively by the Court of Sessions and is
punishable with life imprisonment.
Interim bail
Before the procedure for granting a regular bail or anticipatory bail, interim bail is provided.
It is given for a temporary period. The reason behind this is that the granting of bail by the
High Court or the Court of Session requires documents to be sent by the lower courts,
which takes time. So, for the time being, the provision of interim bail is provided. The
Interim bail can be extended and if its period expires then the person to whom it is granted
has to be put in jail again.
Anticipatory bail
Section 438 of the Criminal Procedure Code, provides the direction for a person
apprehending arrest for any reason to believe.It provides that any person who anticipates
that he can be arrested in pursuance of any accusation of committing a non-bailable crime
can apply for the grant of anticipatory bail. Application has to be made to the High Court or
the Court of Sessions. According to this Section if a person is released then there are some
conditions that will follow- The person has to be present during the investigation whenever
required, The person can not induce any person to disable him to enclose the facts against
him during the proceedings, The person shall not leave India without the prior permission of
the court. It was further provided that if any person is arrested by a police officer without a
warrant then he can be given bail.
Circumstances under which bail is given by police

When the arrest is made without a warrant
Section 43 of the Cr.P.C. provides for the arrest of any accused by a private person. The
private person after the arrest should bring the convicted person to the police station or
hand him over to the police officer as soon as possible. The police will if it thinks that the
convicted person should be released, release him. Section 56 of the Cr.P.C. enables the
police officer to bail that person out under the provision contained in this Section. Section
169 of Cr.P.C. state that the bail can only be set when the investigation is made. Until then
this Section does not provide bail. Bail can be given by the officer-in-charge of the police
station or the police officer who is investigating. Section 170 of Cr.P.C. confers authority to
give bail, in the officer-in-charge of the police station in case the person is accused of
committing a non-bailable offense.
When the arrest is made with the issuance of the warrant
Section 73 of Cr.P.C. states that if the court is issuing the warrant under which it is
specified that if the person executes a bond in which he has provided sureties for appearing
before the court when the court specifies, then the police officer to whom the warrant is
issued will be allowed to give bail to the person. According to Section 81 of Cr.P.C. and
Section 82 of Cr.P.C., it is specified that if the arrest is made in the district, the police officer
other than District Superintendent of Police or the Commissioner of Police can release the
accused from custody, but in case the arrest is made out of such district then the District
Superintendent of Police or the Commissioner of Police in the area of arrest can release the
convicted.
Types of bail
In Gurbaksh Singh Sibbia v. State of Punjab the Supreme Court held that:- “The distinction
between an ordinary order of bail and an order of anticipatory bail is that whereas the
former is granted after arrest and therefore means release from the custody of the police,
the latter is granted in anticipation of arrest and is therefore effective at the very moment
of arrest. Police custody is an inevitable concomitant of arrest for non-bailable offences. An
order of anticipatory bail constitutes, so to say, an insurance against police custody
following arrest for offence or offences in respect of which the order is issued. In other
words, unlike a post-arrest order of bail, it is a pre-arrest legal process which directs
that if the person in whose favor it is issued is thereafter arrested on the accusation in
respect of which the direction is issued, he shall be released on bail.
Procedure of bail
Cases in which bail may be granted (whether release on bail is mandatory?)
In the case of bailable offence it is mandatory to grant bail to the arrested person and in
case of non-bailable offence it depends upon the discretion of the court. Section 436 of the
code talks about the cases in which bail can be taken and section 437 of the code talks
about the cases in which the bail may be taken in case of non-bailable cases.
Cases in which bail to be taken (section 436 of CR.PC)
In this case, if a person who is not guilty of any non-bailable offence and gets arrested
without a warrant by the police authority and is prepared to give bail, then it is the duty of
the police authorities to release him. The person arrested may be released on the bond
without submitting any sureties.
Appealability of the order (section 439 of the code)
Section 439 of the code states that any orders passed under section 436 of the code shall
be appealable.
The order made by the magistrate to the session’s judge is appealable.
In cases when the court of sessions passes an order to the court where an appeal lies
from an order made by such court.
Investigation incomplete (section 167 of the code)
Under section 57 of the code states that a person arrested or taken into custody has to be
released after 24 hours. Within those 24 hours, he has to be presented before the
magistrate with a notice. The period of 24 hours can be extended if the investigation
regarding the offence or crime committed has not been completed. Section 167 states that
in order to extend the period of 24 hours for the purpose of investigation prior order has to
be obtained from the magistrate. If the investigation is not completed the person arrested
or detained shall be released. The period of detention shall not exceed 90 days (in case
where the offence is punishable with the death penalty or life imprisonment) and 60 days
(in case where the offence is punishable for a term less than ten years).
The maximum period for which an under-trial prisoner can be detained (section
436-A of the code)
Under section 436 A of the code states that the detention period for an undertrial prisoner
other than the one who is accused of the criminal offences punishable with death or life
imprisonment shall be released from detention if the person has been detained for one half
of the maximum sentence provided for the offence committed by him.
When may bail be taken in case of non-bailable offences (section 437 of the
code)?
It depends upon the discretion of the court or the police officials that they may release the
person arrested for non-bailable offences until and unless there exists any reasonable
grounds or apprehension that person arrested has committed any crime and is not guilty of
any criminal liabilities which is punishable with life imprisonment or the death penalty.
Bail to require accused to appear before the next appellate court (section 437 A of
the code)
Under section 437A of the code, it has been stated that in order to appear in the higher
court as and when the higher court issues the notice against the judgment of the court it
becomes mandatory for the trial court or the appellate court which requires the accused to
execute the bail bond with sureties.
Bail bonds
A security is used to get the defendant released of who has been required to be granted
bail, basically bail is a financial arrangement that a bail bonding agency will make on behalf
of a criminal defendant. It is usually a contract in which the prisoner and one or more
protection promises that the sum charged by the court will be set that the prisoner must
attend the hearing of the charges against him if he is released on bail. The charge for the
bail bond shall also be agreed by the judges of the court that it may be only 10%-20%
payable at the time of the bail or that the full amount of the bond may be required by the
court. Bail depends on the following factors-
By assessing the severity of the crime in terms of harm to others.
Suspected criminal history.
The danger that the release of offenders could present to the community.
Suspected community links, family relations, and jobs. there exist two types of bail
bonds which are-
Security Bond: A security bond views it as a payment bond or a value bond depending on
the financial status of the underlying company being secured to it.
Personal Bond: A conditional guarantee promising that the convicted suspect must
appear on all court days, the prisoner will not have to comply but fulfills the value of the
guarantee if the commitment to appear is violated, the prisoner will not have to comply
but will fulfill the value of the guarantee. It is also known as a release if the pledge to
appear is violated. It is also known as a release or accept bond, where there is no need
to pay any fee for the bail.
Complaint to a Magistrate (200-203)
Examination of the complainant

Section 200 of CrPC says that a Magistrate, who is authorised to take account of the offence
took place on a complaint, shall consider upon the oath presented by both complainant and
witnesses if there is any and later the material obtained from this examination shall be
reduced to writing along with the sign of the complainant and the witnesses and also of the
Magistrate. According to the definition provided in Section 2(d) of CrPC, a complaint can be
in any of the forms both oral or written. Nor does Section 200 or any other section require
the complainant to present a written complaint to the Magistrate personally. Therefore, the
complaints sent to the Magistrate through posts are valid and he can take action on such
complaints also. Whether the complaint is in the form of writing or oral, Section 200 of
Crpc makes it legally mandatory to be examined by the Magistrate on oath. The mere
objective of such an examination of the complaint presented to the Magistrate is to
establish whether there is any direct or actual case against the person who is being accused
of the offence in the following complaint. Further, it aims to restrict the issue of process on
a complaint which is either false or inappropriate or may be intended only to harass a
person by accusing him of an offence. The provisions provided under Section 200 are not a
mere formality but instead made by the legislature to protect and guard the accused person
against the unwarranted complaints. These provisions are not discretionary but mandatory
to be performed by the Magistrate. In some cases, the non-examination or improper
examination of the complaint by the Magistrate has been considered merely non-uniform
and not “ineffective of the proceedings” in the absence of failure of justice towards the
accused. It is also considered that the non-examination of the complaint by the Magistrate
may cause harm to the complainant, not the person who has been accused by him. There is
no need for re-examination regarding the case ‘complaint by a public servant or court’ and
‘Magistrate forwards the case to a different Magistrate under Section 192’.
The procedure by Magistrate not competent to take

cognizance of the case
According to Section 201 of CrPC, ‘‘If a complaint is made before a Magistrate who is not
competent to take cognizance of the case, then Magistrate will do either of the two things
as follows-
If a Complaint is made in writing, then the Magistrate needs to refer the following case to
the proper court for the presentation with the support for that effect.
If the Complaint is not in writing, then the Magistrate shall direct the complainant to the
proper Court.
Postponement of issue of process
According to Section 202, the order of investigation is called “Post Cognizance

Investigation” which is not the investigation done under Chapter 12 of CrPC (Section
156(3)). Therefore, any report submitted under this order shall be done as per Section 202
CrPC and not as that of Section 173(2) of CrPC. This investigation under Section 202 CrPC
is for the limited purpose as asked for by the Judicial Magistrate. However, the Judicial
Magistrate will not order investigation under Section 202 if:
The matter is exclusively triable by the Court of Session.
When the complaint has been made by the public servant and the matter is not
exclusively triable by the Court of Session.
According to this section, the collection of evidence can be done by the police officer or by
any such person who is considered to be fit and is authorised by the Judicial Magistrate on
that behalf. The main objective of the investigation directed under this section is to aid the
Magistrate in making up a decision to move towards the issue of process and this process
should not be thorough and exhaustive in nature. There need not be any investigation to be
directed if the offence is specially carried out for trial by the Court of Session which is
ultimately going to indirectly help in achieving an inquiry made by the Magistrate himself.
Moreover, in the case where the complaint has not been made by the court then there need
not be any investigation directed unless the complainant and the witnesses have been
examined on the basis of an oath. Section 465 of CrPC will not be able to cure the
proceeding in the case of directing an investigation before such examination but will spoil
the proceeding instead. The magistrate has the discretion to take or not to take any account
of the witness on the oath if the Magistrate wants to decide the case himself.
Section 202(2) of CrPC talks about the idea that in cases of offences which are entirely
triable by the Court of Session the inquiry should be Broad-based in nature whereas unlike
in the cases left on the discretionary action of the Magistrate. This broad-based inquiry is
led by the Magistrate only in the situation where he is unable to make his mind whether to
dismiss the complaint or proceed further to issue a process upon the complaint. In the case
of trial by the Court of Session, it is explicitly required by the Magistrate to call upon the
complainant along with all his witnesses and examine them on oath and here the word ‘All’
means all of them not ‘some’. This provision helps the accused person to prepare him for
defence with respect to the accusations put on him by the complainant and examination of
all the witnesses is not a mere formality. Under Section 202 there is no provision provided
to compel the complainant to be present in the court during the Examination of the
witnesses on oath and especially when the complainant has been already examined on
oath. Dismissal of the complaint by the Magistrate in such a situation will be considered
illegal.
Commencement of Proceeding before Magistrate

(204-210)
Scrutiny of the complainant before issues of process
The examination of the complainant is an initial process that strengthens the entire
proceedings. This process adds credibility to complaints in the beginning stages. It is
necessary to scrutinize the complaint before issuing the process. Chapter XVI would come
into play only after this examination is over. The locus standi of the complainant is verified
using this examination. The Magistrate will also verify whether the complainant would come
under the exceptions provided in Section 195 to Section 199. The magistrate can issue the
process without postponing: when the prima facie case is made out in the investigation.
This process of scrutinizing the complainant has to be done by the Magistrate himself and
not by the advocate, however, the concerned advocate can help in the process. Section 190
of the Code of Criminal Procedure provides the condition to take cognizance of offences by
magistrates.
According to this section, the Magistrate can take cognizance when:
1. After receiving a police complaint;
2. After receiving complaints of facts which constitutes any offence;
3. After receiving information from any person other than a police officer, or upon his own
knowledge, that such offence has been committed;
4. The Chief Judicial Magistrate can empower any Magistrate of the second class to take
cognizance of offences which are within his competence to conduct an inquiry or a trial.
The Magistrate can scrutinize the complaint and examine it completely before issuing a
process.
Examination of complainant
Section 200 of the Code of Criminal Procedure deals with the examination of the
complainant. The magistrate after taking cognizance of an offence has to examine the
complainant and witnesses present. This examination has to be done upon oath. The
magistrate also has the duty to note down the relevant information found in such
examination. The substance of such examination should be given in writing and that has to
be signed by the complainant and the witnesses. The magistrate need not conduct this
examination when:
1. If the complaint is made by a public servant who is acting or purporting to act in the
discharge of his official duties or a Court;
2. If the Magistrate makes over the case for enquiry or trial to another Magistrate under
Section 192.
If the magistrate in charge has examined the case and makes over the case for enquiry or
trial to another magistrate, then the latter magistrate does not need to examine the cases
again.
Trial Proceedings
Framing of Charges and Joinder of Charges

Essential provision related to framing of Charges
The general principle regarding charges as purported by Section 218 of the Code Of
Criminal Procedure, 1973 is that every offence of which a particular has been accused
shall come under a separate charge and each such charge shall be tried separately and
distinctly. This means that each offence has to be treated as a separate entity and should
be tried distinctively.
But, Section 218(2) carves out exceptions to Section 218(1). The provisions of
Section 219, 220, 221 and Section 223, override the provisions as mentioned under
Section 218 of the Code Of Criminal Procedure. This means that Section 219- 223 talks
about joinder of charges
Jurisdiction of the Criminal Courts in Inquiries and

Trials (179)
Section 177 – According to this section, the Court under whose jurisdiction the offence
has been committed only has the authority to inquire into and try such case.
Section 178 deals with the situations where the offence has been committed in more
than one place,
When the place of commission of the offence is uncertain because it has been
committed in several places.
Where an offence is partly committed in one local area and the rest in another area.
When the offence comprises several acts, committed in different local areas.
If any of the above conditions are fulfilled, then such offence may be inquired into or tried
by a Court having jurisdiction over any of such local area.
Section 179, emphasises that fact that when an act is an offence because of anything
which has been done and as a consequence which has ensued, the said offence may be
inquired into or tried by a court of competent jurisdiction. Section 180 deals with the
place of trial when the act committed is an offence because it is related to some other
offence. According to it the offence which has been committed first has to be inquired into
or tried, when two acts are done in connection with each other and both are offences, by
the court under whose jurisdiction either of the act has been committed. In all such
provisions, the emphasis is always on the place where the offence has been committed, to
find the jurisdiction. But, section 181 specifies conditions in case of certain offences.
According to section 181(1), the trial can also be commenced where the accused is found,
besides the place where the offence was committed. Section 181(1) talks about the
offences, when not committed in a single place. It deals with the following cases. Thug, or
murder committed while performing the act of thug, dacoity, or dacoity with murder etc-
where the offence is committed or where the accused is found.
Kidnapping or abduction of a person- the place from where the person was kidnapped/
abducted or where the person was concealed or conveyed or detained. Theft, extortion or
robbery – the Court where the offence has been committed or where the stolen property is
possessed, received or delivered, has the jurisdiction to try such a case. Criminal
misappropriation or criminal breach of trust- where the offence has been committed or
where any part of the property which is the subject matter of the offence has been received
or retained, required to be returned or accounted for, by the accused. But the above section
deals with offences when the offender is travelling, as evident from the nature of the
offences as specified under this section.
Section 182 deals with offences committed by letters etc. Under this section, if any offence
includes cheating, if the victim has been deceived by means of letters or telecommunication
messages, it shall be looked into by the Court under whose local jurisdiction such letters or
messages have been sent or received; and under the local jurisdiction of the Court in which
the property has been delivered by the person deceived or has been received by the
accused person.
Section 183 deals with offences which have been committed during journey or voyage.
When a person commits an offence, during journey or against a person who is travelling, or
the thing in respect of which, the offence has been committed is in due course of its journey
or voyage, the offence has to be inquired into or tired by a Court through or into whose
local jurisdiction that person or thing has passed, during the journey. The place of trial for
offences which are triable together consists of two circumstances. When any person
commits offences, such that he may be charged with, tried at one trial for, each such
offence according to the provisions of section 219, section 220 or section 221. When
the offences or offences have been committed by several persons, in a manner that the
Court may charge and try them together, according to the provisions of section 223. In
either of the circumstances, the Court which is competent to inquire and try such do the
same. section 185 deals with the power of the State Government, according to which the
government can direct that any cases or class of cases which have been committed for trial
in any district, may be tried in a sessions court. It has to ensure that such direction is not
inconsistent with any of the directions which have been already issued by any other
Superior Court, as per the Constitution, or as mentioned under the Code of Criminal
Procedure or under any other law for the time being in force.Section 186 addresses the
situation wherein the cognizance of a particular offence has been taken by two or more
courts and confusion arises as to which of the Courts shall inquire into or try that offence, in
such a case, only the High Courts have the authority to resolve the confusion. The criteria
for resolving such issues are as follows.
If the same High Court supervises the courts involved, then by that High Court
If the same High Court does not supervise the courts involved then, by the High Court
which first commenced the proceedings as an appellate criminal court. Thereafter, all the
other proceedings in respect of that offence shall be discontinued.
Section 187 states the power of a Magistrate to issue summons or warrant for offences
which have been committed beyond his local jurisdiction. In such a situation the Magistrate
has the authority to order such a person to be produced before him and then send him to
the Magistrate of competent jurisdiction.
The conditions related to the offences when committed outside the territory of India have
been dealt with under section 188. According to this section, when an offence is
committed outside India-
by a citizen of India, whether on the high seas or elsewhere
by a person, not being such citizen, on any ship or aircraft registered in India.
Such a person may be treated in respect of such offence as if it had been committed at any
place within India and at such a place, where he may be found. The proviso to this section
specifies that no such offence shall be inquired into or tried in India without the previous
sanction from the Central Government. The most important factor in the above-mentioned
provision is the place where the offence has been committed.
Section 188 specifically deals with the case when the offence is committed outside India.
These offences have to be deemed to have been committed in India, if committed by an
Indian citizen, in high seas or in any other place. Also, when the offence is committed by a
person who although is not an Indian citizen but is travelling in any Indian aircraft or ship.
In the case of Reg vs. Benito Lopez(1), the issue related to the jurisdiction of English
Courts for the offences committed on the high seas by foreigners who are travelling in
England borne ships was questioned. It was held that the country which tried the accused
did not go beyond its jurisdiction. The decision highlighted the important principle of
International Law that a person is liable to be punished of all such offences, which he has
committed irrespective of the place where it is committed.
Types of trials: Sessions Trial, Warrant Trial,

Summons Trial, Summary Trial
Warrant trial (238-250)
Process of a warrant trial

Cases instituted on a police report
This type of case is filed as an FIR in the police station and is the first step in the process of
warrant cases instituted on a police report. The case is then forwarded to the Magistrate.
When any case is instituted on a police report, and the accused is brought or appears
voluntarily before the Magistrate, the Magistrate shall satisfy himself for complying with the
provisions of Section 207. And Section 238 to 243 of CrPC lays down the procedure of trial
of warrant cases instituted on a police report and the steps are mentioned below.
Initial steps in the trial
The initial steps involve the filing of an FIR. Once the FIR is filed in the police station, an
investigation is conducted to discover the facts and relevant details of the case. Once the
investigation is completed, a charge-sheet is filed and the documents are forwarded by the
police station to the Magistrate. The steps in warrant cases instituted on police report are:
Supply of copy of police report to accused in compliance with Section 207. (Section 238)
Discharge of accused on baseless charges. (Section 239)
Framing of charges. (Section 240)
Conviction on a guilty plea. (Section 241)
Evidence for the prosecution. (Section 242)
Evidence for defence. (Section 243)
Supply of copies to the accused
A copy of the police report and other documents relevant to the case should be supplied to
any person or persons who appears or is brought before a magistrate at the
commencement of the trial. And the Magistrate shall satisfy himself in complying with the
provisions of Section 207. This is to ensure that the accused are aware of the charges
against him and can prepare for defence under fair trial by law.
Discharge of accused if allegations against him are baseless
Once the Magistrate receives the police report and other relevant documents and provides
them to the accused, the Magistrate shall consider each report. A hearing shall be convened
and a reasonable opportunity shall be provided for both the accused prosecution to present
their case. The Magistrate examines the accused if necessary. If the charge against the
accused is discovered to be baseless and lacking in substance, the accused shall be
discharged under Section 239. The prima facie of the case is also considered. In the case of
State vs Sitaram Dayaram Kachhi, 1957, the accused, Sitaram was acquitted under Section
239.
Framing of charge
Section 240 of CrPC authorises the Magistrate to consider the police report and even to
examine the accused if he feels the need to. If the Magistrate feels the presence of valid
grounds to presume that the accused has committed the offence and is capable of
committing such an offence, and he is competent to try the offence to adequately punish
the accused in his opinion. Then the written charge is framed against the accused and the
trial is conducted after the charge is read and explained to the accused. Framing of the
charge is a duty of the court and the matter must be considered judiciously.
In the case of Lt. Col. S.K. Kashyap V. The State Of Rajasthan, 1971, the accused files an
appeal challenging the authority of the special judge appointed to hear the case. The appeal
is failed and dismissed and the case proceedings are continued.
Explaining the charge to the accused
Clause 2 of Section 240 describes that the charge against the accused shall be read and
explained to the accused. Once the accused understands the charges against him, he shall
be asked whether he pleads guilty of the offence or wishes to challenge the charge by a fair
trial under the law.
Conviction on a guilty plea
The accused can plead guilty to cut short the procedure of law and reduce the punishment
for his offence. The Magistrate records the guilty plea and convicts the accused on his
discretion. (Section 241)
Evidence for prosecution
Section 242 of CrPC defines the procedure with regards to the gathering of evidence against
the offender and recording the evidence after examination and cross-examination to acquit
or convict an accused individual. In a criminal trial, the case of the state is presented first.
The burden of proving the accused guilty is on the prosecution and the evidence must be
beyond a reasonable doubt. The prosecution can summon witnesses and present other
evidence in order to prove the offence and link it to the offender. This process of proving an
accused individual guilty by examining witnesses is called examination in chief. The
Magistrate has the power to summon any person as a witness and order him to produce any
document. State vs Suwa, 1961 is a case where the orders of the Magistrate to acquit the
accused were set aside and a retrial was ordered by sending the case to a District-
Magistrate who sent them for a trial to a Magistrate other than the one that tried the case
originally.
Steps in evidence presentation of prosecution
Fixing date for the examination of witnesses
Examination of witnesses
Presentation of evidence
Record of the evidence
Evidence for the defence
Section 243 of CrPC describes the procedure with regards to collecting and presenting
evidence in the defence of the accused. After the prosecution is finished with the
examination of the witness, the accused may enter his defence in a written statement and
the Magistrate shall file it with the record. Or defence can be produced orally. After the
accused has entered his defence, an application may be put to the Magistrate to perform
cross-examination of any witness presented by the prosecution. The Magistrate may then
summon any witness under Sub-section 2 to be cross-examined by the defence. The
prosecution must establish the case beyond a reasonable doubt and if the defence can
prove a reasonable doubt then the evidence submitted by the prosecution is not valid and
cannot be recorded in court against the accused.
Written statement of accused
Examination of witnesses for the defence
Summary Trial
The legal provisions governing summary trials under the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973
are Section 260 to Section 265. Under Section 262 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973,
the procedure for summary trials has been laid down.The procedure followed for summon
cases has to be followed for summary cases as well. The exception in summary trials is,
that a sentence exceeding the duration of three months cannot be passed in case of
conviction under this Chapter.
The procedure for a summons case can be briefly stated as follows:
For a criminal procedure to begin, the first step is to file an FIR or a complaint. This is
investigated upon by the police and evidence is collected. At the end of the investigation, a
charge sheet is filed by the police. This is also called the pre-trial stage.
The accused person is then taken before the Magistrate who orally reads the particulars of
the offences to the accused. In summons and summary trials, a formal charge is not written
down.
The Magistrate after stating the particulars of the offence committed asks the accused if he
pleads guilty or not. If the accused person pleads guilty, the Magistrate makes a record of
the statement of the accused and then proceeds for conviction.
If the accused does not plead guilty, the trial begins. The prosecution and the defence are
given an equal opportunity to put their case forward. The Judge may then decide the
acquittal or the conviction of the accused.
In summary cases, the difference lies at this juncture. If the Judge delivers a judgment of
conviction of the accused – the maximum sentence that can be passed for imprisonment is
three months.
Record in summary trials
The procedure to formulate a record in summary trials is laid down in Section 263 of the
Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.
In all summary cases, the Magistrate has the duty to enter the following particulars, in the
following format prescribed by the State Government:
The serial number of the case;
The date when the offence was committed;
The date when the report or the complaint was filed;
The name of the complainant, if any;
The name, residence and parents’ name of the accused person;
The offence about which the complaint has been made and any proven offence (if it
exists);
The value of the property regarding which the offence has been committed, if the case
comes under Section 260(1) (ii) or Section 260(1) (iii) or Section 260(1) (iv) of the
Code;
The plea of the accused person and his examination, if any;
The finding of the Court;
The sentence or any other final order passed by the Court;
The date when the proceedings ended.
Judgment in cases tried summarily
Section 264 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 lays down how a judgment should be
in cases which are tried summarily. The Magistrate has the duty to record the substance of
the evidence along with a judgment containing a brief statement of the reasons for such
finding, in all summarily tried cases where the accused does not plead guilty. Under Section
326(3) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 the use of pre-recorded evidence by a
successor judge is barred in the instance when the trial has to be conducted summarily,
according to Section 262 to 265 of the Code.
In Shivaji Sampat Jagtap vs. Rajan Hiralal Arora, it was held by the Bombay High Court that
if the procedure mentioned in Section 263 and Section 264 of the Code has not been
particularly followed, then the succeeding Magistrate does not need to hold a trial de novo.
In this case, the petitioner filed a complaint under Section 138 of the Negotiable
Instruments Act,1881. The Magistrate issued the process, summons to the accused was
served and consequently, his plea was recorded. But before the Magistrate could deliver the
judgment, he ceased to have jurisdiction and was succeeded by another Magistrate. The
new Magistrate delivered a judgment on the basis of evidence which was recorded by his
predecessor. An appeal was filed that the new Magistrate should have conducted a de novo
trial as contemplated under Section 326(3) as the predecessor had conducted the case as a
summary trial. As this was not done, it was contended that the entire proceeding was
vitiated. The Sessions Court then quashed the conviction. Therefore, this revision
application was filed. It was held by the Court that the present case was not tried
summarily. It was, in fact, tried as a summons case. Therefore, the impugned judgment
was quashed.
Session trial (225-237)

Process of session trial: Session Court deals with criminal matter at a district level. To be
more accurate these offences are of more serious nature, the session court does not have
the power to take cognizance only under Section 199 of the CrPC it can take cognizance
in all other cases the cognizance will be taken by Magistrate and commit the trail.
Initial Stage
It is very simple and easy to understand the initial stage with the help of the illustration–
In a courtroom, the public prosecutor will act as one side and the accused person will be the
other party in the matter. Here, the court expects that all the necessary documents need to
be given to an accused person in advance so he has a clear idea why the trail is being taken
place.
Public Prosecutor is appointed under Section 24 of the Act, who is acting under the direction
of such prosecutor.
When the case is brought under Section 209 of the CrPC then in those condition public
prosecutor needs to present the piece of evidence so the trail can be started without any
delay. All the details regarding what all charges are framed against him need to be
mentioned in a court of law. After this stage, if magistrate feels that there is no case
regarding the accused person then he will be discharged.
Second Stage of the Trial
If the accused person pleads his guilt then he will be punished as per the nature of
punishment and he will get convicted and if he did not plead then the court will fix a date
for going through a further process like examination of a witness, production of any
document etc. He needs to plead guilty from his own mouth, not by his pleader. Any
admission made by his leader is not binding in nature.The court needs to have all pieces of
evidence which are presented in the case and during the cross-examination stage.
Third Stage of the Trial
It is the last stage where the accused person is either convicted or acquittal. The court may
acquit the accused person if no evidence is laid down which indicate the involvement of the
accused in committing the Act. If no acquittal took place then, accused get the opportunity
to present his case through writing or any other means he can produce evidence, witnesses
to defend himself just like the way prosecution did it. An omission on the part of the Judge
is the failure of justice. An accused person can apply for an application for compelling the
attendance of a witness, all such application needs to be accepted by the court. He can only
deny in a situation where he is sure that such application is vexatious in nature just to
waste the precious time of the COURT
Summon trial (251-259)

Explanation of the particulars of the offence
Section 251 provides that it is not mandatory to frame charges but the section does not
dispense with the explanation of the particulars of the offence when accused is brought or
appear before the Court. This is done to make the accused cognizant for the allegations
made against him. If in case unable to convey the particulars than this will not vitiate the
trial and it will not lead to the prejudice with the accused as this irregularity is remediable
under section 465 of the code[3]. Under section 251 courts shall ask the accused whether
the accused pleads guilty, and section 252 and 253 needs to comply for conviction on such
plea of guilty.
Conviction on plea of guilty
Section 252 and 253 provides conviction on the plea of guilty. Section 252 provides plea of
guilty in general and section 253 provides plea of guilty in case of the petty cases. In case
accused plead guilty, the answer is affirmative than in accordance with law court will record
the plea in the exact words of the accused on the basis of which accused can be convicted
on the Court’s discretion. If not affirmative than the court needs to proceed further with
Section 254. If the accused plead guilty, and the charges against him do not constitute any
offence than mere plea will not amount to the conviction of the accused. As the magistrate
has the discretion to convict on the plea or not, if on plea the accused is convicted than the
magistrate shall proceed according to section 360 otherwise hear the accused on the
question of sentence and sentence him according to law. If the plea of guilty is not accepted
than magistrate shall proceed according to section 254.
Procedure if the accused not convicted on plea
Section 254 provides about both prosecution and defence case if the accused not convicted
on plea under section 252 and 253.
Prosecution case
The magistrate will hear the accused and take all the evidence. In the hearing, the
prosecution will be given chance to open its case by putting facts and circumstances which
constitute the case and by revealing the evidence which he relied upon to prove the case.
The magistrate on the application of the prosecution, serve summon to any witness to
attend and to produce any document or thing. The magistrate will prepare the
memorandum of the evidence according to section 274. Same as other trials in summon
cases also the magistrate will comply with section 279 i.e., interpretation of evidence to the
accused and 280 i.e., recording of the demeanor of the witnesses.
Hearing of the defence: – (Defence Case)
After the prosecution evidence under 254 and examination of defence under section 313, in
the continuance of this, the court will proceed with the defence hearing under section
254(1). In the hearing of the defence means accused will be asked for accused say against
the prosecution evidence. Failure of hearing of the accused in any case will amount to the
fundamental error in the criminal trial and it can not be cured under section 465. Evidence
produced by the accused will be recorded in the same manner as in case of prosecution
under section 274, 279, 280. After the submission of the evidence of the defence, he will be
allowed to submit his arguments under section 314.
Acquittal or conviction
After recording the evidence under 254 the magistrate will acquit the accused if he finds the
accused not guilty. If the accused is guilty than Magistrate shall proceed according to
Section 360 or 325 otherwise, sentence him according to the law. According to section 256
on the date fixed for the appearance of the accused nonexistence of the complainant will
empower the court to acquit the accused unless the court has the reason to adjourn the
case to some other day. Section 256(1) is also applicable in case of the death of the
complainant↓. In case the representative of the dead complainant does not appear for 15
days where the defendant appeared, the defendant can be acquitted held by the Supreme
Court.[4]
Judgement and Sentences under the Code
Judgement (353-360)
Form and contents of the judgment under Section 353 In a judgement Ratio decidendi
and Obiter dicta form an integral part. Ratio decidendi is the binding statement in
judgement and Obiter Dicta is the “by the way” remarks delivered by the judge which is not
necessary to the case at hand. These two are very important as they define the legal
principles which are useful to the legal fraternity.
If the judgement is of acquittal-
Whether the evidence of the prosecution absolutely failed to prove the guilt of the
accused or merely failed to prove it beyond a reasonable doubt.
If the act or omission from which the liability might arise doesn’t exist.
If the judgement is of conviction-
The essential elements of the offence committed by the accused and the intervening
circumstances which led to the commission of this offence.
Participation of the accused as the principal perpetrator, or accomplice or accessory.
The penalty that is imposed on the accused.
Language and contents of judgment
Under Section 354, of CrPC, it is stated that every judgement should be:
In the language of the Court, Shall contain the points of determination and the reason
for the same.
The offence should be specified and the reason for the same should be given for the
same. The offence so committed must be mentioned in the IPC or any other law under
which the crime is committed and the punishment is given.
If the offender is acquitted, the offence for which he was acquitted, the reason for the
same and it must be specified that a person is now a free man.
If the judgment is passed under the IPC and the judge is not certain as to under which
Section the offence is committed or under which part of the Section, the judge should
specify the same in the judgement and should pass orders in both the alternate
situations.
The judgement shall furnish a proper reason for the conviction if it is a sentence for a
term of life imprisonment and in case of death sentence the special reason has to be
given.
Judgment given by Metropolitan Magistrate under Section 355
Under Section 355 of the CrCP, it is mentioned that the judge instead of giving the
judgement in an above-mentioned way, can deliver it in an abridged version that would
contain-
The serial number of the case,
Date of the commission of the offence,
Name of the complainant,
Name of the accused person, his parentage and residence,
Offence complained of or proved,
Plea of the accused and his examination,
Final order,
Date of the order,
In cases where the appeal lies from the final order, a brief statement of reasons for the
decision.
Sentence of imprisonment
Under Section 354 of the CrPC, when the conviction is for an offence punishable with
imprisonment for life or imprisonment for a term of years, the judgment shall state the
reasons for the sentence awarded, and, in the case of the death sentence, the special
reasons for it. Moreover, when the conviction is for an offence punishable with imprisonment
for a term of one year or more, but the Court imposes a sentence of imprisonment for a
term less than three months, it shall record its reasons for the same, unless the sentence is
one of imprisonment till the rising of the Court or the case was tried summarily.
Sentence of fine
Under Section 357 of the Code, when a Court imposes a sentence of fine or a sentence in
which fine is also included then the Court while passing judgment may order the whole or
any part of the fine recovered to be applied:
In defraying the expenses incurred during the prosecution.
In the payment to any person as compensation for any loss or injury caused by the
offence, when compensation is recoverable in the Civil Court.
When any person is convicted of any offence for causing the death of another person or
have encouraged the commission of such an offence, have to pay compensation to the
persons who are, under the Fatal Accidents Act, 1855 entitled to recover damages from
the person sentenced for the loss resulting to them from such death.
When any person is convicted of any offence which includes theft, criminal
misappropriation, criminal breach of trust, or cheating, or dishonestly receiving or
retaining, or voluntarily assisting in disposing of stolen property knowing or believing the
same to be stolen then compensation has to be given to the bona fide purchaser of such
property for the loss of the same if such property is restored to the possession of the
person entitled.
If the fine is imposed in a case which is appealable, no such payment shall be made before
the period allowed for presenting the appeal has lapsed, or if an appeal is presented then
before the decision of the appeal is delivered.
Compensation for wrongful arrests under Section 358
Under Section 358, it is stated that in case a person compels the police to arrest another
person, which the Magistrate thinks that there is no ground for such arrest, the Magistrate
may order compensation not exceeding Rs 1000, to be paid by the person who causes such
arrest. The fine is given as a way of compensation for the loss of time and expenses or
other matter, as the judge may think fit. If more than one person is arrested on such basis,
then each of them should be awarded a compensation not exceeding Rs 100, as the
Magistrate thinks fit. Such compensation shall be recovered as a fine and if the person does
not pay the compensation then the Magistrate can sentence him to imprisonment not
exceeding 30 days unless the compensation is sooner paid.
Submission of Death Sentences for Confirmation

(366-371)
Submission for conformation to High Court (Section 366)

Section 366 partially answers the question of who can pass a verdict. This section provides
that if a Session Court passes the death sentence against the accused(s) then the High
Court needs to confirm it before it comes into effect. Thereby, it is necessary to submit the
proceedings before the High Court and only after confirmation from the High Court the
execution can be brought into effect, and not before that.
The death penalty is the highest level of punishment and it follows the principle of ‘rarest of
rare’ (uncommon crime or that is unusual to a person of ordinary prudence, the one which
shocks and causes tremors throughout the judiciary and the society). This section works as
a precautionary step to minimize the error while meeting the ends of justice.
The case of Bantu Son of Vidya Ram Bediya vs State Of U.P. (2006) was submitted to the
Allahabad High Court from Agra’s Sessions Court under Section 366 of CrPC. The accused
had committed the offence of rape, murder and kidnapping. The rape was so gruesome that
during the postmortem a stem of more than a feet was retrieved from her vagina which was
inserted by the accused while committing the offence. Allahabad High Court upheld the
death penalty of the accused stating that it was the rarest of rare case.
Further Sections provide the powers the High Court has in regard to cases submitted under
Section 366 of the CrPC.
Power to direct further inquiry to be made or additional

evidence to be taken (Section 367)
Sub-section (1) of Section 367 of the CrPC provides that when the proceeding for
confirmation of the death penalty is submitted to the High Court and it notices any point of
innocence or guilt of the accused, it may either direct the Sessions Court or itself to make
further inquiry into it or take additional evidence into consideration. It is usually done when
the High Court feels that the Sessions Court has missed some points or factors.
Sub-section (2) of Section 367 provides that the convict can be directed to dispense his/her
presence during such inquiry or taking of the evidence unless the High Court otherwise
directs.
Sub-section (3) of Section 367 provides that if the Sessions Court (authority other than the
High Court) makes the enquiry or takes into consideration such evidence then it shall be
certified by the Sessions Court.
In the case of Balak Ram Etc vs The State of U.P. (1974) the Supreme Court in the final
judgment stated that High Court had failed in properly considering the pieces of evidence of
the prosecutor’s witnesses and held that while inquiring against a death penalty case or
taking into consideration different pieces of evidence, the High Court shall take into
consideration all the pieces of evidence itself as it is its duty.
Power to the High Court to confirm sentence or annul

conviction (Section 368)
Section 368 provides that when a case is submitted to the High Court under Section 366 of
the Code of Criminal Code, the High Court may;
confirm the sentence passed by the Sessions Court, or pass a sentence other than the
one provided it is warranted by the law, or
annul the conviction passed by the Sessions Court, and instead either convict the
accused under any other offence for which the Session’s Court had convicted him/her or
order for a trial on an amended charge or on the same charge, or
acquit the accused of the charges made against him.
The proviso to the section states that till the time the limitation period to file an appeal
against the verdict is not expired, or the appeal is still pending or is not disposed of, the
Court cannot pass an order of confirmation. In the case of Kartarey and Ors. vs The State of
Uttar Pradesh (1975), the Sessions Court had passed the verdict announcing the death
sentence which was later altered by the High Court. When the case reached the Supreme
Court it was observed that the High Court has committed a grave error in examining the
evidence or additional evidence. It states that it is the duty of the High Court to ‘reap-
praise’ the evidence in totality and it shall come to a conclusion on the merits of the case
only after considering the proceedings in all their aspects. It is important and crucial to
consider the defence evidence equally and not to neglect it as this is contradictory to the
settled rule of practice and law.
Confirmation or new sentence to be signed by two judges

(Section 369)
Section 369 provides that whenever a case is submitted to the High Court under Section
366 of CrPC it shall be heard by a divisional bench i.e. at least by two or more judges. For
confirmation of:
the sentence, or
any new sentence, or
any order.
Passed by the High Court shall be ‘made, passed and signed’ by either two or more judges.
It is an essential condition that cannot be ignored.
General Provisions as to Inquiries and Trial
Mode of taking and Recording Evidence

Section 272 to 283 of CrPC read with rules under Chapter XII of General Rules and Circular
Order Volume I, explains the Mode of taking and recording Evidence in criminal cases. The
following are the modes of recording evidence:
Section 273– It is mandatory to record all the evidence only in the presence of the accused
when his personal attendance has been dispensed, the evidence must be recorded in the
presence of a pleader.
Section 274– Magistrate shall record a memorandum of the substance of evidence in the
court language and must be signed by the Magistrate.
Section 275(1)– In all the warrant cases, the evidence of each witness shall be in writing by
Magistrate or under his direction if the Magistrate is unable to do so due to some physical or
other incapacities, under his direction and superintendence, by the officer of the court who
is appointed by the Magistrate on his behalf. The evidence under this subsection is to be
recorded by audio-video electronic.
Section 275(3)– This section permits the Magistrate to record evidence in question and
answer form.
Section 276– In Session Court, the recording should be done in a narrative form. The
presiding officer at his discretion can take down any part of the evidence in question and
answer format which has to be signed by him
Section 278– When the evidence of a witness is completed, it should be read over to the
accused or his pleader. This shouldn’t be done at the end of the day when all the witnesses
have been examined. The evidence if needed can be corrected by the accused.
Section 280– The presiding judge or magistrate is empowered to record the remarks.
Marking of Exhibits
Some evidence shall be submitted by the prosecution, this evidence has to be marked with
the number in the order in which they are submitted. The documents that are admitted on
behalf of defence shall be marked with capital letter alphabets. If in case neither party does
not accept the evidence then the evidence shall be marked as Ext C-I, C-II etc.
If more than one number of documents are of similar nature, then the small letter or small
number is added in order to distinguish each document in the series. After the evidence is
proved and admitted it shall be marked with a Roman number. Example MO-I, MO-II etc.
the bench clerk of the court shall prepare the list of articles which shall be signed by the
Judge.
Cases
Javer Chand and Ors. V. Pukhraj Surana, 1961
In this case, it was held that the Court does not proceed further whenever an objection is
raised in the court without passing any order on such an objection. If there is an objection
on the stamp duty of a document, then objection will be decided then and there before
proceeding further.
State of Madhya Pradesh v. Budhram, 1995
In this case that accused was convicted for an offence under Section 302 of IPC and was
subjected to a death sentence. The conviction was set aside evidence was not recorded in
his presence, later the case was remanded back for trial.
Execution, Suspension, Remission and Commutation

of Sentences (432-435)
Execution of sentence of death

Execution of order passed under Section 368
Under Section 366 of the CrPC,1973, a session judge cannot execute a death sentence
without the confirmation of the High Court, till that time the convict has to be in jail
custody. The High Court, under Section 368 of the CrPC, looks into the case. The High Court
can:
Confirm the sentence given by the Session Court.
Annul the conviction and convict the accused of the same charges as that of the Session
Court or may order for fresh proceedings on the same or altered charges.
May acquit the person, as the time for the appeal has not lapsed yet or the appeal has
been disposed of.
Any order received by the Session Court from the High Court has to be executed by the
Session Court by way of issuance of a warrant. (Section 413 of the CrPC). Execution of
sentence of death passed by High court. Under Section 414 of the CrPC, if the High Court,
passes the order of death sentence in appeal or revision, the Session Court has to carry on
the order by issuing a warrant.
Suspension and remission of sentences

Constitutional provisions
The Constitution of India, vests a large amount of sovereign power in the President and the
Governor. Centre and the State are governed in the name of President and Governor
respectively. Under Article 72 of the Indian Constitution, the President has the power to
pardon, remit, suspend or commute any sentence.Under Article 72, the President has the
power to pardons, reprieves, respites or remission of punishment or to suspend remit or
commute the sentence of any person convicted of any offence:
In cases where the punishment is given by the court-martial. The Governor’s power to
remit, suspend or commute the sentence under the laws of the State, shall be given
precedence.
In cases where the power of executive extends.
In cases where the punishment is a death sentence.
Similarly, under Article 161 of the Constitution of India, these powers are conferred on the
Governor of the States. The Governor can pardon, reprieve, respite a punishment or
suspend, remit or commute the sentence, which is given on the basis of the laws prevalent
in the State, to which the executive power of the State extends. The difference between the
pardoning power of the President and that of the Governor is that the Governor does not
enjoy the power to grant pardon to a death sentence.
However, this power of the President is not absolute and depends on the consultation with
the council of ministers. This is not present in the Constitution but practically this process is
followed. Further, the Constitution does not provide for any mechanism to check the legality
of the decision taken by the President and the Governor while exercising their mercy power.
However, in the case of Epuru Sudhakar vs the State of Andhra Pradesh, a small leeway is
provided for judicial review of the mercy granting power of the President and the Governor
to rule out any sort of arbitrariness.
Commutation of sentence
In contrast to Suspension and Remission, which only affect the duration of the punishment
without interfering with the nature of the punishment, Commutation, on the other hand,
changes the nature of the punishment and converts it into a less severe form of
punishment. There is nothing to restrict the government to commutate a sentence, even if
it is as low as a fine. Under Section 433 of the CrPC, the appropriate government gets the
power to commutate the sentence in an appropriate case. Various sentences are eligible for
commutation, one of them is death sentence i.e.mercy plea.
Death sentence to any other punishment provided in the IPC.
Imprisonment for life to any other imprisonment not exceeding fourteen years or fine.
Sentence of rigorous imprisonment for simpler imprisonment which the person has been
sentenced or a fine.
Sentence for a simple sentence to a fine.
Commutation of death sentence has always been in the controversy, it raises an issue
regarding the basic human rights of the accused and on the other hand the impact of the
grave crime on the society. Section 433 of the CrPC gives the power to the government to
commutate the death sentence to a simpler sentence.
Most of the convicts of the death sentence, get their sentence reduced to 14 years of life
imprisonment in accordance with the provisions of CrPC.
Miscellaneous
Appeals (372-394)
An appeal is a tool given to the parties of a case to ensure justice is served and all the
parties are satisfied by the judgment. After hearing all the parties in a case, a competent
court pronounces the judgment and if the parties are not satisfied with the judgment they
have a right to appeal to a higher court. Such an appeal would give the aggravated party
another opportunity to present their case to a higher authority or the Appellate Court who
would judge the case with a fresh perspective and if there are any wrongdoings, they would
be corrected. When the verdict is unreasonable or not supported by evidence, or when
there is miscarriage of justice on any grounds, then such a verdict can be appealed.
Object and scope of appeals

Even though Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), does not define appeal, legally it is to be
understood as judicial review done by a higher court of a decree, order or judgment passed
by a subordinate court. The Cambridge dictionary defines appeal as “a request made to a
court of law or to someone in authority to change a previous decision.”
In case of no law for appeal
As already discussed appeal is neither an inborn right nor a vested right, but one which is
given by the statue itself. If there is no provision allowing an appeal for a case, then such
an appeal would not be allowed.
Appeals from convictions

Defendants convicted of an offence are not always satisfied with the judgment and may
think they have been wrongfully convicted. In such circumstances, they may ask a higher
court to review the judgment or order passed under Section 374 of the code. The typical
hierarchy of the state consists of:
The Trial Court or Court of Session;
The High Court;
The Supreme Court.
Appeal to the Court of Session

As per Section 374(3), when an order or decree for conviction is made in a trial conducted
by Metropolitan Magistrate or Assistant Session Judge or Magistrate of the first class or
Magistrate of the second class, then the convicted may appeal to the Court of Session. If a
sentence for conviction is made under Section 325 of the code, i.e after referring to the
Chief Judicial Magistrate, then such conviction can also be appealed to the Court of Session.
Lastly, when a convict is released on probation of good conduct or after admonition under
Section 360 of the code, the order may be appealed to the Court of Session.
Appeal to the High Court

According to Section 374(2) of the Code, any person convicted may appeal to the High
Court against a judgment passed by the Sessions Judge or an Additional Sessions Judge or
on a trial held by any other court wherein a sentence of imprisonment for 7 years or less
was passed. For instance, when a judgment is passed by the Sessions Judge, imprisoning
the defendant for 5 years, then such a defendant can appeal to the High Court if he thinks
the judgment was unfair.
Appeal to the Supreme Court

Section 374(1) of the Code, allows any person convicted by the High Court in its
extraordinary original criminal jurisdiction to appeal for the same in the Supreme Court of
India. According to Section 379 of the Code, where the High Court on appeal, reverse an
order of acquittal of the defendant and convicted him with imprisonment for not less than
10 years, life imprisonment or death penalty, the convict may appeal to the Supreme Court.
As per Article 132(2) of the Constitution of India, if the High Court is satisfied that there is a
substantial question of law which is in question, then an appeal can be made to the
Supreme Court from any judgment, decree or final order from any High Court within the
territory of India.
Reference and Revision (395-405)

The word “revision” has not been defined in CrPC, however, as per Section 397 of CrPC, the
High Court or any Sessions Judge have been empowered to call for and examine the
records of any proceeding satisfy oneself:
as to the correctness, legality, or propriety of any finding, sentence or order, whether

recorded or passed, and
as to the regularity of any proceedings of an inferior court.
Moreover, they have the powers to direct the execution of any sentence or an order to be
suspended. Not just this, but to even direct to release the accused on bail or on his own
bond if the accused is in confinement. They may even order an inquiry subject to certain
limitations.It is clearly evident that the appellant courts have been granted such powers so
as to obviate any failure of justice.
The Honourable Supreme Court of India, in the context of this provision, held in the case of
Amit Kapoor vs Ramesh Chander & Anr that “the revisional jurisdiction can be invoked
where the decisions under challenge are grossly erroneous, there is no compliance with the
provisions of law, the finding recorded is based on no evidence, material evidence is ignored
or judicial discretion is exercised arbitrarily or perversely.” The same Court, further
explaining this provision, held in the case of State Of Rajasthan vs Fatehkaran Mehdu[21]
that “the object of this provision is to set right a patent defect or an error of jurisdiction or
law or the perversity which has crept in the proceeding.”
The High Court has the power to take up a revision petition on its own motion i.e. suo moto
or on the petition by an aggrieved party or any other party. The Allahabad High Court held
in the case of Faruk @ Gaffar vs State Of U.P.[22] that “whenever the matter is brought to
the notice of the Court and the Court is satisfied that in the facts and circumstances of the
case, a case is made out for exercising the revisional powers suo motu, it can always do so
in the interest of justice.”
There are certain statutory limitations that have been imposed on the High Court for
exercising its revisional powers as per Section 401 of CrPC, however the only statutory
requirement to exercise this power is that the records of the proceedings are presented
before it, after which it is solely the discretion of the Court:
An accused is to be given due opportunity to hear him and on order cannot be passed
unless this is followed.
In instances where a person has forwarded a revisional application assuming that an

appeal did not lie in such a case, the High Court has to treat such application as an
appeal in the interests of justice.
An application of revision cannot be proceeded with if it has been filed by a party where
the party could have appealed but did not go for it.
The High Court, as well as the Sessions Court, may call for record of any proceeding of
any inferior criminal Court situated within its jurisdiction for the purpose of satisfying
itself as to the correctness, legality of propriety of any finding, sentence, etc. Thus, the
Sessions Judge could examine the question in relation to the inadequacy of sentence in
view of the powers conferred on him by Section 397(1) of CrPC.
The difference between the powers of the High Court and the Sessions Court being that the
Sessions Judge can only exercise revisional powers which he has called for by himself,
whereas the High Court has the power to take up a revisional matter by itself or when it is
brought to its knowledge. The powers of a Sessions Court are the same as that of the High
Court while dealing with revisional cases. The Madras High Court in the case S.
Balasubramaninan vs The State Of Tamil Nadu held that “a Sessions Judge can entertain an
application in revision against sentence and enhance the sentence in revision in certain
cases.” It has also been previously held by the Hon’ble Supreme Court in the case Alamgir
vs State of Bihar that “in respect of enhancement of sentence in revision the enhancement
can be made only if the Court is satisfied the sentence imposed by the trial Court is unduly
lenient, or that in passing the order of sentence, the trial court has manifestly failed to
consider the relevant facts”
Inherent Power of Court (482)

Section– 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure
“Nothing in this code shall be deemed to limit or affect the inherent powers of the High
court to make such orders as may be necessary to give effect to any order under the Code,
or to prevent abuse of the process of any court or otherwise to secure the ends of justice”.
Sec 482 of the CrPC deals with the inherent powers of the court. This section was added
by the Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Act of 1923, as the high courts were
unable to render complete justice even if the illegality was apparent. The inherent
jurisdiction may be exercised under this section, except under 3 circumstances, namely:
To secure the ends of justice.
To prevent abuse of the process of the court.
To give effect to an order under CrPC.
When can the inherent powers be exercised?
The jurisdiction is completely discretionary. The High Court has the power to refuse to
use its power.
The jurisdiction of High Court is not limited only to cases that are pending before the
High Court, and it can consider any case that comes to its notice (in appeal, revision or
otherwise).
Under Section of 248 of CrPC, when the aggrieved party is being unnecessarily harassed,
then this power can be implored if he has no other remedy open to him.
The High Court does not conduct a trial or appreciate evidence. This power of High Court
is limited to cases that compel it to intervene for preventing a palpable abuse of a legal
process.
The High Court has the right to provide relief to the accused even if he or she has not
filed a petition under section 482.
If any trial is pending before the apex court, and has been directed to the sessions judge
for the issuance a non- bailable warrant regarding an arrest of the Petitioner(s), this
power of High Court can not be exercised.
Section 482 of the CrPC specifies that the inherent power is not intended to scuttle
justice at the threshold, but to secure justice.
This power has to be exercised sparingly with circumspection and in the rarest of rare
cases, but it cannot be said that it should only be exercised in the rarest of rare cases.
The expression rarest of rare case may be exercised where death penalty is to be
imposed under Section 302 of IPC but this expression cannot be extended to a petition
under Section 482 CrPC.
Any proceeding if it finds that initiation to abuse of the process of Court, Court would be
justified to the quashing of these proceedings.
As long as the inherent power under Section 482 of CrPC is in the statute, the exercise of
such power is not impermissible.
Transfer of Criminal Cases (406-411)

Section 406 of the Code of Criminal Procedure confers the power upon the Supreme Court
to transfer cases and appeals. The Code grants the widest discretionary powers to the
Supreme Court to transfer any case or appeal lying before the High Court to any other High
Court of any state in the country in order to meet the ends of justice and fulfil the principle
of natural justice. The application requesting the transfer of any case or appeal pending
before the High Court can be moved to the Supreme Court by any of the following persons:
Who is under the apprehension of unfair trial by the court; or
Who is unable to find any proper justice being served to himself; or
Attorney General or Advocate General of India.
The power granted by the Code under Section 406 to the Supreme Court is purely
discretionary in nature and the applicant is under no obligation to conclusively establish that
in case the transfer does not take place then fair justice will not take place and the
applicant is only expected to reasonably substantiate the contentions made by him under
the application he has submitted to the Supreme Court. The application under Section 406
of the Code is made by the interested party should always be in the form of motion
supported by an affidavit or affirmation, except in the cases where the applicant is the
advocate general or attorney general of the country.
The power of the Supreme Court to transfer the cases and appeals also extends to the
transfer the cases from any subordinate court in the country where any matter is pending.
However, the court where the case is pending can ensure that the Supreme Court, while
transferring the case is taking all the measures to uphold fairness and principles of natural
justice. The parties in any suit are always guaranteed the opportunity to bring to the notice
of any court with appropriate jurisdiction that there are reasonable grounds which uphold
the apprehension in the mind of the person that certain factors inhibit his right to a fair
trial.
In Vishwanath Gupta v. State of Uttar Pradesh, the applicant filed an application for the
transfer of a case on the contention that he was under the apprehension that he wouldn’t
be able to engage a counsel in the court where a case against him was already pending in
the case. However, the District Bar Association submitted an application assuring the court
that a defence counsel from among the members of the Bar Association would be made
available to the applicant. The Supreme Court held the application to be invalid dismissing
the prayer for the transfer.
In Sukhdev Singh Sodhi vs The Chief Justice And Judges of The PEPSU High Court, the court
held that the power of transferring of cases with the Supreme Court does not extend to
transfer of any contempt proceeding which is pending before the High Court.
The power of transfer of cases and appeals is not only discretionary but is also limited as
Section 406 does not clothe the Supreme Court with the power to transfer investigation
pending before one police station to another for the only reason being the forwarding of FIR
to the court. In cases where the Supreme Court is of the opinion that the application made
is frivolous in nature and is devoid of any substantial claim then it may order the party
which came up with the application to pay compensation of not more than one thousand
rupees to the party which opposed such application.
In Kaushalya Devi v. Mool Raj, the Supreme Court held that in cases where the application
of transfer of the case is made but the Magistrate dealing with the case opposes the
application by himself filing an affidavit then the transfer of the case, without any doubt in
the complete interest of justice because in all such cases the essentials of fair and impartial
trial are already put to peril which is signified by the personal involvement of the judge
himself.
Grounds for transfer of appeal and cases
To uphold the spirit of justice: The ultimate goal of any judicial system on the earth is
the deliverance of justice and protection of the rights of every person. The courts are
highly revered institutions of justice with people having high expectations of justice
which is sought after by the aggrieved party. Therefore, the court is under high moral
obligations for keeping the machinery of justice, equity and good conscience alive.
Recommendations made by the superior judicial officers: The courts while deciding
whether to transfer the cases and appeals from one court to another takes into
consideration the inquiries and findings as revealed by the reports carried on by the
senior judicial officers such as Chief judicial magistrate or any sessions judge.
Upon request by the trial court: Where the court before which the matter is pending
deems the case to be outside its scope of jurisdiction due to involvement of a substantial
question of law which is outside its purview. It may request the higher judiciary to
transfer the case.
Lack of complete jurisdiction: In certain cases, the court has limited jurisdiction over
the subject matter of the case before it. In such cases of shared or limited juridical
issues, the court trying the case has the liberty of transferring the case to the court
which possesses the conclusive jurisdiction of trying the matter. This process ensures
that complete justice has been done to the parties before the court.
Differences between the party and the judicial officer: In circumstances where
there is already a presence of differences between the judicial officer and any of the
party the chances of an unfair and partial trial being carried out are relatively higher.
Therefore, the party apprehending such consequences of carrying on of the trial is
granted the opportunity by the judicial system to apply for transfer of the case.
Infringement of principles of natural justice: Where the proof of continued

contravention of the principles of natural justice by any court or judicial officer is
rendered by a party to the Supreme Court, then in order to uphold the principles of
natural justice, the court may order the transfer of the case.
The very purpose of Criminal law is the free and fair dispersal of justice which is not
influenced by any extraneous considerations. Section 407 of the Code of Criminal
Procedures enables the party to seek for transfer of case anywhere within the state while
Section 406 of the Code enables the party to seek transfer of the case anywhere in the
country.
Circumstances in which HC may order the transfer of a case or appeal
The High Court has the authority to transfer the cases when it is satisfied that:
The right to a fair and impartial trial which is guaranteed under Article 21 of the Indian
Constitution can not be exercised by any of the party to the suit if the case is tried by any
of the courts which is subordinate to it; Certain questions pertaining to the present matter
in the court are of unusual difficulty; The transfer of the appeal or the case is made
inevitable by any of the provisions under the Code; The order of transfer will be in the
interest of the general convenience of the parties or witnesses involved in the suit.
Plea Bargaining (265-A)

A sense of confidence in the courts is essential to maintain the fabric of ordered liberty for a
free people and three things could destroy that confidence and do incalculable damage to
society: The first being that people come to believe that inefficiency and delay will drain
even a just judgment of its value.
The above statement, written by Warren E. Burger, in an address to the American Bar
Association point to the importance of timely justice in a free society. The biggest problem
that Indian justice system is facing is the huge backlog of cases. Noted jurist Nani Palkiwala
rightly said, “The law may or may not be an ass, but in India, it is certainly a snail”. More
than three crore cases are languishing in the Courts for various reasons. .One of the major
reason behind this abysmally low disposal of cases by Judiciary is the lack of number of
judges in the respective courts. Apart from huge backlog of cases, the conviction rate in our
country is also very low hence the credibility of judgment is doubted. Judicial process is
additionally time consuming, cumbersome and expensive.
All these problems call for an alternative. A way that would lead to speedy trial and efficient
sentencing. A proposed alternative to this would be bringing the opportunity of plea
bargaining into the Indian Criminal Justice System.
Plea Bargaining can be described as “pre-trial negotiations between the accused and the
prosecution during which the accused agrees to plead guilty in exchange for certain
concessions by the prosecution.”They are also referred as plea agreement, plea deal or
copping a plea. The procedure for a plea bargain is simple – A bargain or deal is struck
between the accused and the prosecution whereby, the accused will agree to plead guilty to
the charge when enquired by the trial Judge and in return will get a lesser sentence or
plead guilty to one or more charge in return for the promise that the other charges will be
dropped against him. The trial Judge takes an active part in this process.
In the US, plea bargaining was introduced in the 19th Century and has proved to be very
successful. It has been an integral part of their justice system. Though Plea Bargaining has
not specifically been mentioned in their Constitution, its legality has been upheld in their
judicial pronouncements. Today, almost 90 to 95% of criminal cases in the US are disposed
off by plea bargaining rather than jury trial.
Procedure For Plea Bargaining

Plea Bargaining can happen in a number of ways:
The Law Commission of India advocated the introduction of plea bargaining in India (even
though the Supreme Court vehemently opposed it) in its 142nd, 154th and 177th reports.
The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act of 2005 introduced a chapter XXI A into the Criminal
Procedure Code, 1973. This came into effect on 5th July 2006. It allows plea bargaining to
be used in the following circumstances–
1. Only for those offences that are punishable with imprisonment below 7 years.
2. If the accused has been previously convicted for a similar offence by any court, then
he/she will not be entitled to plea bargaining.
3. Plea Bargaining is not available to offences which might affect the socioeconomic
conditions of the country. For eg, for offences under the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961,
Commission of Sati Prevention Act, 1987, Juvenile Justice (Care and protection of
Children) Act, 2000
4. It is also not available if the offence if committed against a woman or child below 14
years.
5. Plea Bargaining is not available for serious offences such as murder, rape
Plea Bargaining Can Happen In The Following Ways –
Withdrawal of one or more charges against an accused in return for a plea of guilty
Reduction of a charge from a more serious charge to a lesser charge in return of a plea
of guilty
Recommendations by prosecutor to sentencing judges for lesser sentence in lieu of plea

of guilty.
It may happen in many cases that the accused entering into plea bargaining may not do so
voluntarily. Therefore, to ensure that the plea bargaining has happened in a proper way and
justice has been ensured, the Court must adhere to the following minimum requirements,
The hearing must take place in Court
The Court must satisfy itself that the accused is voluntarily pleading guilty and there is
no existence of coercive bargaining to the prejudice of the accused
Any Court rejecting a plea bargaining application must be kept confidential to prevent
prejudice to the accused.
Case laws under crpc
1. ”In the case of Babu vs State of Kerala, The Court observed that Public Prosecutors are
ministers of justice who is duty bound to assist the judge in the administration of justice.
(PUBLIC PROSECUTOR UNDER FUNCTIONARY)
2. In the case of V.C. Shukla vs. State, Justice Desai, while delivering the conclusive
judgement opined, “the purpose of framing a charge is to give intimation to the accused
of clear, unambiguous and precise notice of the nature of the accusation that the accused
is called upon to meet in the course of a trial.” ( CHARGE)
3. The charge sheet made by the Police correlates and mentions the complaint of that
private individual on which the criminal proceedings have taken place. Submission of the
Charge sheet by the police officer reflects that the initial investigation and preparation
regarding the same case are done and now Magistrate can take offence committed under
his consideration as stated in Rama Shankar v. State [AIR 1956 All 525] (POLICE
REPORT)
4. Abhinandan Jha v Dinesh Mishra (AIR 1968 SC 117) It has been opined that the
Magistrate is not entitled to order an investigation by a senior police officer in charge of
the police station. In this case, the court observed that the creation of the opinion by the
police officer by whom or under whom the investigation took place, is the final step in
the investigation and that final step is to be taken by the police and not by any other
authority. Thus, there is no power expressly or impliedly given under the provisions to a
magistrate to call upon the police to submit a charge-sheet. When the police officer has
sent a report under Section 169 that there is no case can be made from the following
report to send the accused for trial, in that case the charges are to be made by the
Magistrate to keep in mind the report submitted by the police as per Section 228 and
Section 240 of CrPC. (INVESTIGATION)
5. In the case of Narotamdas L. Shah v. Pathak Nathalal Sukhram And Anr., the accused
was held liable for defamation to which the witnesses were cross examined and the
Magistrate was of the view that the case should be transferred while the accused
demanded a re-hearing of the witnesses to which the Magistrate said that the accused
can only have this right when the case is in trial and the case here was at the stage of
enquiry only. The judge of the Sessions Court was of the view that setting aside of the
demand made by the accused was wrong. The Gujarat High Court in this case held that
trial in warrant cases starts when the accused has been presented before the Magistrate
and thus quashing the order of the Magistrate. (TRIAL)
6. The principle of natural justice should be considered in respect of both the parties. Right
to a speedy trial is recognized in the case Huissainara khatoon vs Home Secretary, State
of Bihar, the court held- “the trial is to be disposed of as expeditiously as possible”.
(RIGHT OF AN ARRESTED PERSON)
7. Amiya kumar v. state of west Bengal 1978 Cri.LJ 288 In the instant case, it was held that
section 438 of the code empowers both the high court and the session’s court to grant
the anticipatory bail. Both the high court and the Sessions court have the competency to
grant this bail. If the Sessions court rejects the petition filed by the applicant for the
anticipatory bail then he can’t file the petition for the same in the high court.
(PROCEDURE OF BAIL)
8. In the case of K. Satwant Singh v. State Of Punjab AIR 1960 SC 266, that the
sections of joinder of charges are not compelling in nature. They only permit the joint
trial of charges under certain circumstances, and the courts may consider the same in
the interest of the administration of justice after thoroughly studying the facts and
circumstances of each case. (JOINDER OF CHARGES)
9. In the case of Reg vs. Benito Lopez(1), the issue related to the jurisdiction of English
England borne ships was questioned. It was held that the country which tried the
accused did not go beyond its jurisdiction. The decision highlighted the important
principle of International Law that a person is liable to be punished of all such offences,
which he has committed irrespective of the place where it is committed.
(JURISDICTION OF CRIMINAL COURTS)
10. In the case of State of Himachal Pradesh V. Krishan Lal Pradhan, 1987, the Supreme
Court held that there was sufficient relevant material on record and the prima facie of
the case was established by one judge. But the succeeding judge came to the decision on
the same materials that no charge could be established and therefore, an order of
discharge was passed. But it was held by the Supreme Court that no succeeding judge
can pass an order of discharge. (WARRANT TRIAL)
11. In the case of State of Punjab vs Kala Ram @ Kala Singh (2018), the Court held that
under Section 366(2) of CrPC the court while passing the conviction shall grant the jail
custody of the convicted person under a warrant i.e. the person shall be kept in custody
and not as a punishment. The ‘safe keeping’ in jail custody is the limited jurisdiction of
the jailor. It is a trusteeship in the hands of the Superintendent, and not an
imprisonment in a real sense. (SUBMISSION OF DEATH SENTENCE)
12. Javer Chand and Ors. V. Pukhraj Surana, 1961 In this case, it was held that the Court
does not proceed further whenever an objection is raised in the court without passing
any order on such an objection. If there is an objection on the stamp duty of a
document, then objection will be decided then and there before proceeding further.
(GENERAL PROVISIONS AS TO INQUIRY AND TRIAL)
Section 439 of the code states that any orders passed under section 436 of the code shall
be appealable.
The order made by the magistrate to the session’s judge is appealable.
In cases when the court of sessions passes an order to the court where an appeal lies
from an order made by such court.
Investigation incomplete (section 167 of the code)
Under section 57 of the code states that a person arrested or taken into custody has to be
released after 24 hours. Within those 24 hours, he has to be presented before the
magistrate with a notice. The period of 24 hours can be extended if the investigation
regarding the offence or crime committed has not been completed. Section 167 states that
in order to extend the period of 24 hours for the purpose of investigation prior order has to
be obtained from the magistrate. If the investigation is not completed the person arrested
or detained shall be released. The period of detention shall not exceed 90 days (in case
where the offence is punishable with the death penalty or life imprisonment) and 60 days
(in case where the offence is punishable for a term less than ten years).
The maximum period for which an under-trial prisoner can be detained (section
436-A of the code)
Under section 436 A of the code states that the detention period for an undertrial prisoner
other than the one who is accused of the criminal offences punishable with death or life
imprisonment shall be released from detention if the person has been detained for one half
of the maximum sentence provided for the offence committed by him.
When may bail be taken in case of non-bailable offences (section 437 of the
code)?
It depends upon the discretion of the court or the police officials that they may release the
person arrested for non-bailable offences until and unless there exists any reasonable
grounds or apprehension that person arrested has committed any crime and is not guilty of
any criminal liabilities which is punishable with life imprisonment or the death penalty.
Bail to require accused to appear before the next appellate court (section 437 A of
the code)
Under section 437A of the code, it has been stated that in order to appear in the higher
court as and when the higher court issues the notice against the judgment of the court it
becomes mandatory for the trial court or the appellate court which requires the accused to
execute the bail bond with sureties.
Bail bonds
A security is used to get the defendant released of who has been required to be granted
bail, basically bail is a financial arrangement that a bail bonding agency will make on behalf
of a criminal defendant. It is usually a contract in which the prisoner and one or more
protection promises that the sum charged by the court will be set that the prisoner must
attend the hearing of the charges against him if he is released on bail. The charge for the
bail bond shall also be agreed by the judges of the court that it may be only 10%-20%
payable at the time of the bail or that the full amount of the bond may be required by the
court. Bail depends on the following factors-
By assessing the severity of the crime in terms of harm to others.
Suspected criminal history.
The danger that the release of offenders could present to the community.
Suspected community links, family relations, and jobs. there exist two types of bail
bonds which are-
Security Bond: A security bond views it as a payment bond or a value bond depending on
the financial status of the underlying company being secured to it.
Personal Bond: A conditional guarantee promising that the convicted suspect must
appear on all court days, the prisoner will not have to comply but fulfills the value of the
guarantee if the commitment to appear is violated, the prisoner will not have to comply
but will fulfill the value of the guarantee. It is also known as a release if the pledge to
appear is violated. It is also known as a release or accept bond, where there is no need
to pay any fee for the bail.
Complaint to a Magistrate (200-203)
Examination of the complainant

Section 200 of CrPC says that a Magistrate, who is authorised to take account of the offence
took place on a complaint, shall consider upon the oath presented by both complainant and
witnesses if there is any and later the material obtained from this examination shall be
reduced to writing along with the sign of the complainant and the witnesses and also of the
Magistrate. According to the definition provided in Section 2(d) of CrPC, a complaint can be
in any of the forms both oral or written. Nor does Section 200 or any other section require
the complainant to present a written complaint to the Magistrate personally. Therefore, the
complaints sent to the Magistrate through posts are valid and he can take action on such
complaints also. Whether the complaint is in the form of writing or oral, Section 200 of
Crpc makes it legally mandatory to be examined by the Magistrate on oath. The mere
objective of such an examination of the complaint presented to the Magistrate is to
establish whether there is any direct or actual case against the person who is being accused
of the offence in the following complaint. Further, it aims to restrict the issue of process on
a complaint which is either false or inappropriate or may be intended only to harass a
person by accusing him of an offence. The provisions provided under Section 200 are not a
mere formality but instead made by the legislature to protect and guard the accused person
against the unwarranted complaints. These provisions are not discretionary but mandatory
to be performed by the Magistrate. In some cases, the non-examination or improper
examination of the complaint by the Magistrate has been considered merely non-uniform
and not “ineffective of the proceedings” in the absence of failure of justice towards the
accused. It is also considered that the non-examination of the complaint by the Magistrate
may cause harm to the complainant, not the person who has been accused by him. There is
no need for re-examination regarding the case ‘complaint by a public servant or court’ and
‘Magistrate forwards the case to a different Magistrate under Section 192’.
The procedure by Magistrate not competent to take

cognizance of the case
According to Section 201 of CrPC, ‘‘If a complaint is made before a Magistrate who is not
competent to take cognizance of the case, then Magistrate will do either of the two things
as follows-
If a Complaint is made in writing, then the Magistrate needs to refer the following case to
the proper court for the presentation with the support for that effect.
If the Complaint is not in writing, then the Magistrate shall direct the complainant to the
proper Court.
Postponement of issue of process
According to Section 202, the order of investigation is called “Post Cognizance

Investigation” which is not the investigation done under Chapter 12 of CrPC (Section
156(3)). Therefore, any report submitted under this order shall be done as per Section 202
CrPC and not as that of Section 173(2) of CrPC. This investigation under Section 202 CrPC
is for the limited purpose as asked for by the Judicial Magistrate. However, the Judicial
Magistrate will not order investigation under Section 202 if:
The matter is exclusively triable by the Court of Session.
When the complaint has been made by the public servant and the matter is not
exclusively triable by the Court of Session.
According to this section, the collection of evidence can be done by the police officer or by
any such person who is considered to be fit and is authorised by the Judicial Magistrate on
that behalf. The main objective of the investigation directed under this section is to aid the
Magistrate in making up a decision to move towards the issue of process and this process
should not be thorough and exhaustive in nature. There need not be any investigation to be
directed if the offence is specially carried out for trial by the Court of Session which is
ultimately going to indirectly help in achieving an inquiry made by the Magistrate himself.
Moreover, in the case where the complaint has not been made by the court then there need
not be any investigation directed unless the complainant and the witnesses have been
examined on the basis of an oath. Section 465 of CrPC will not be able to cure the
proceeding in the case of directing an investigation before such examination but will spoil
the proceeding instead. The magistrate has the discretion to take or not to take any account
of the witness on the oath if the Magistrate wants to decide the case himself.
Section 202(2) of CrPC talks about the idea that in cases of offences which are entirely
triable by the Court of Session the inquiry should be Broad-based in nature whereas unlike
in the cases left on the discretionary action of the Magistrate. This broad-based inquiry is
led by the Magistrate only in the situation where he is unable to make his mind whether to
dismiss the complaint or proceed further to issue a process upon the complaint. In the case
of trial by the Court of Session, it is explicitly required by the Magistrate to call upon the
complainant along with all his witnesses and examine them on oath and here the word ‘All’
means all of them not ‘some’. This provision helps the accused person to prepare him for
defence with respect to the accusations put on him by the complainant and examination of
all the witnesses is not a mere formality. Under Section 202 there is no provision provided
to compel the complainant to be present in the court during the Examination of the
witnesses on oath and especially when the complainant has been already examined on
oath. Dismissal of the complaint by the Magistrate in such a situation will be considered
illegal.
Commencement of Proceeding before Magistrate

(204-210)
Scrutiny of the complainant before issues of process
The examination of the complainant is an initial process that strengthens the entire
proceedings. This process adds credibility to complaints in the beginning stages. It is
necessary to scrutinize the complaint before issuing the process. Chapter XVI would come
into play only after this examination is over. The locus standi of the complainant is verified
using this examination. The Magistrate will also verify whether the complainant would come
under the exceptions provided in Section 195 to Section 199. The magistrate can issue the
process without postponing: when the prima facie case is made out in the investigation.
This process of scrutinizing the complainant has to be done by the Magistrate himself and
not by the advocate, however, the concerned advocate can help in the process. Section 190
of the Code of Criminal Procedure provides the condition to take cognizance of offences by
magistrates.
According to this section, the Magistrate can take cognizance when:
1. After receiving a police complaint;
2. After receiving complaints of facts which constitutes any offence;
3. After receiving information from any person other than a police officer, or upon his own
knowledge, that such offence has been committed;
4. The Chief Judicial Magistrate can empower any Magistrate of the second class to take
cognizance of offences which are within his competence to conduct an inquiry or a trial.
The Magistrate can scrutinize the complaint and examine it completely before issuing a
process.
Examination of complainant
Section 200 of the Code of Criminal Procedure deals with the examination of the
complainant. The magistrate after taking cognizance of an offence has to examine the
complainant and witnesses present. This examination has to be done upon oath. The
magistrate also has the duty to note down the relevant information found in such
examination. The substance of such examination should be given in writing and that has to
be signed by the complainant and the witnesses. The magistrate need not conduct this
examination when:
1. If the complaint is made by a public servant who is acting or purporting to act in the
discharge of his official duties or a Court;
2. If the Magistrate makes over the case for enquiry or trial to another Magistrate under
Section 192.
If the magistrate in charge has examined the case and makes over the case for enquiry or
trial to another magistrate, then the latter magistrate does not need to examine the cases
again.
Framing of Charges and Joinder of Charges

Essential provision related to framing of Charges
The general principle regarding charges as purported by Section 218 of the Code Of
Criminal Procedure, 1973 is that every offence of which a particular has been accused
shall come under a separate charge and each such charge shall be tried separately and
distinctly. This means that each offence has to be treated as a separate entity and should
be tried distinctively.
But, Section 218(2) carves out exceptions to Section 218(1). The provisions of
Section 219, 220, 221 and Section 223, override the provisions as mentioned under
Section 218 of the Code Of Criminal Procedure. This means that Section 219- 223 talks
about joinder of charges
Jurisdiction of the Criminal Courts in Inquiries and

Trials (179)
Section 177 – According to this section, the Court under whose jurisdiction the offence
has been committed only has the authority to inquire into and try such case.
Section 178 deals with the situations where the offence has been committed in more
than one place,
When the place of commission of the offence is uncertain because it has been
committed in several places.
Where an offence is partly committed in one local area and the rest in another area.
When the offence comprises several acts, committed in different local areas.
If any of the above conditions are fulfilled, then such offence may be inquired into or tried
by a Court having jurisdiction over any of such local area.
Section 179, emphasises that fact that when an act is an offence because of anything
which has been done and as a consequence which has ensued, the said offence may be
inquired into or tried by a court of competent jurisdiction. Section 180 deals with the
place of trial when the act committed is an offence because it is related to some other
offence. According to it the offence which has been committed first has to be inquired into
or tried, when two acts are done in connection with each other and both are offences, by
the court under whose jurisdiction either of the act has been committed. In all such
provisions, the emphasis is always on the place where the offence has been committed, to
find the jurisdiction. But, Section 181 specifies conditions in case of certain offences.
According to section 181(1), the trial can also be commenced where the accused is found,
besides the place where the offence was committed. Section 181(1) talks about the
offences, when not committed in a single place. It deals with the following cases. Thug, or
murder committed while performing the act of thug, dacoity, or dacoity with murder etc-
where the offence is committed or where the accused is found.
Kidnapping or abduction of a person- the place from where the person was kidnapped/
abducted or where the person was concealed or conveyed or detained. Theft, extortion or
robbery – the Court where the offence has been committed or where the stolen property is
possessed, received or delivered, has the jurisdiction to try such a case. Criminal
misappropriation or criminal breach of trust- where the offence has been committed or
where any part of the property which is the subject matter of the offence has been received
or retained, required to be returned or accounted for, by the accused. But the above section
deals with offences when the offender is travelling, as evident from the nature of the
offences as specified under this section.
Section 182 deals with offences committed by letters etc. Under this section, if any offence
includes cheating, if the victim has been deceived by means of letters or telecommunication
messages, it shall be looked into by the Court under whose local jurisdiction such letters or
messages have been sent or received; and under the local jurisdiction of the Court in which
the property has been delivered by the person deceived or has been received by the
accused person.
Section 183 deals with offences which have been committed during journey or voyage.
When a person commits an offence, during journey or against a person who is travelling, or
the thing in respect of which, the offence has been committed is in due course of its journey
or voyage, the offence has to be inquired into or tired by a Court through or into whose
local jurisdiction that person or thing has passed, during the journey. The place of trial for
offences which are triable together consists of two circumstances. When any person
commits offences, such that he may be charged with, tried at one trial for, each such
offence according to the provisions of section 219, section 220 or section 221. When
the offences or offences have been committed by several persons, in a manner that the
Court may charge and try them together, according to the provisions of section 223. In
either of the circumstances, the Court which is competent to inquire and try such do the
same. Section 185 deals with the power of the State Government, according to which the
government can direct that any cases or class of cases which have been committed for trial
in any district, may be tried in a sessions court. It has to ensure that such direction is not
inconsistent with any of the directions which have been already issued by any other
Superior Court, as per the Constitution, or as mentioned under the Code of Criminal
Procedure or under any other law for the time being in force. Section 186 addresses the
situation wherein the cognizance of a particular offence has been taken by two or more
courts and confusion arises as to which of the Courts shall inquire into or try that offence, in
such a case, only the High Courts have the authority to resolve the confusion. The criteria
for resolving such issues are as follows.
If the same High Court supervises the courts involved, then by that High Court
If the same High Court does not supervise the courts involved then, by the High Court
which first commenced the proceedings as an appellate criminal court. Thereafter, all the
other proceedings in respect of that offence shall be discontinued.
Section 187 states the power of a Magistrate to issue summons or warrant for offences
which have been committed beyond his local jurisdiction. In such a situation the Magistrate
has the authority to order such a person to be produced before him and then send him to
the Magistrate of competent jurisdiction.
The conditions related to the offences when committed outside the territory of India have
been dealt with under Section 188. According to this section, when an offence is
committed outside India-
by a citizen of India, whether on the high seas or elsewhere
by a person, not being such citizen, on any ship or aircraft registered in India.
Such a person may be treated in respect of such offence as if it had been committed at any
place within India and at such a place, where he may be found. The proviso to this section
specifies that no such offence shall be inquired into or tried in India without the previous
sanction from the Central Government. The most important factor in the above-mentioned
provision is the place where the offence has been committed.
Section 188 specifically deals with the case when the offence is committed outside India.
These offences have to be deemed to have been committed in India, if committed by an
Indian citizen, in high seas or in any other place. Also, when the offence is committed by a
person who although is not an Indian citizen but is travelling in any Indian aircraft or ship.
In the case of Reg vs. Benito Lopez(1), the issue related to the jurisdiction of English
England borne ships was questioned. It was held that the country which tried the accused
did not go beyond its jurisdiction. The decision highlighted the important principle of
International Law that a person is liable to be punished of all such offences, which he has
committed irrespective of the place where it is committed.
Types of trials: Sessions Trial, Warrant Trial,

Summons Trial, Summary Trial
Warrant trial (238-250)
Process of a warrant trial

Cases instituted on a police report
This type of case is filed as an FIR in the police station and is the first step in the process of
warrant cases instituted on a police report. The case is then forwarded to the Magistrate.
When any case is instituted on a police report, and the accused is brought or appears
voluntarily before the Magistrate, the Magistrate shall satisfy himself for complying with the
provisions of Section 207. And Section 238 to 243 of CrPC lays down the procedure of trial
of warrant cases instituted on a police report and the steps are mentioned below.
Initial steps in the trial
The initial steps involve the filing of an FIR. Once the FIR is filed in the police station, an
investigation is conducted to discover the facts and relevant details of the case. Once the
investigation is completed, a charge-sheet is filed and the documents are forwarded by the
police station to the Magistrate. The steps in warrant cases instituted on police report are:
Supply of copy of police report to accused in compliance with Section 207. (Section 238)
Discharge of accused on baseless charges. (Section 239)
Framing of charges. (Section 240)
Conviction on a guilty plea. (Section 241)
Evidence for the prosecution. (Section 242)
Evidence for defence. (Section 243)
Supply of copies to the accused
A copy of the police report and other documents relevant to the case should be supplied to
any person or persons who appears or is brought before a magistrate at the
commencement of the trial. And the Magistrate shall satisfy himself in complying with the
provisions of Section 207. This is to ensure that the accused are aware of the charges
against him and can prepare for defence under fair trial by law.
Discharge of accused if allegations against him are baseless
Once the Magistrate receives the police report and other relevant documents and provides
them to the accused, the Magistrate shall consider each report. A hearing shall be convened
and a reasonable opportunity shall be provided for both the accused prosecution to present
their case. The Magistrate examines the accused if necessary. If the charge against the
accused is discovered to be baseless and lacking in substance, the accused shall be
discharged under Section 239. The prima facie of the case is also considered. In the case of
State vs Sitaram Dayaram Kachhi, 1957, the accused, Sitaram was acquitted under Section
239.
Framing of charge
Section 240 of CrPC authorises the Magistrate to consider the police report and even to
examine the accused if he feels the need to. If the Magistrate feels the presence of valid
grounds to presume that the accused has committed the offence and is capable of
committing such an offence, and he is competent to try the offence to adequately punish
the accused in his opinion. Then the written charge is framed against the accused and the
trial is conducted after the charge is read and explained to the accused. Framing of the
charge is a duty of the court and the matter must be considered judiciously.
In the case of Lt. Col. S.K. Kashyap V. The State Of Rajasthan, 1971, the accused files an
appeal challenging the authority of the special judge appointed to hear the case. The appeal
is failed and dismissed and the case proceedings are continued.
Explaining the charge to the accused
Clause 2 of Section 240 describes that the charge against the accused shall be read and
explained to the accused. Once the accused understands the charges against him, he shall
be asked whether he pleads guilty of the offence or wishes to challenge the charge by a fair
trial under the law.
Conviction on a guilty plea
The accused can plead guilty to cut short the procedure of law and reduce the punishment
for his offence. The Magistrate records the guilty plea and convicts the accused on his
discretion. (Section 241)
Evidence for prosecution
Section 242 of CrPC defines the procedure with regards to the gathering of evidence against
the offender and recording the evidence after examination and cross-examination to acquit
or convict an accused individual. In a criminal trial, the case of the state is presented first.
The burden of proving the accused guilty is on the prosecution and the evidence must be
beyond a reasonable doubt. The prosecution can summon witnesses and present other
evidence in order to prove the offence and link it to the offender. This process of proving an
accused individual guilty by examining witnesses is called examination in chief. The
Magistrate has the power to summon any person as a witness and order him to produce any
document. State vs Suwa, 1961 is a case where the orders of the Magistrate to acquit the
accused were set aside and a retrial was ordered by sending the case to a District-
Magistrate who sent them for a trial to a Magistrate other than the one that tried the case
originally.
Steps in evidence presentation of prosecution
Fixing date for the examination of witnesses
Examination of witnesses
Presentation of evidence
Evidence for the defence
Section 243 of CrPC describes the procedure with regards to collecting and presenting
evidence in the defence of the accused. After the prosecution is finished with the
examination of the witness, the accused may enter his defence in a written statement and
the Magistrate shall file it with the record. Or defence can be produced orally. After the
accused has entered his defence, an application may be put to the Magistrate to perform
cross-examination of any witness presented by the prosecution. The Magistrate may then
summon any witness under Sub-section 2 to be cross-examined by the defence. The
prosecution must establish the case beyond a reasonable doubt and if the defence can
prove a reasonable doubt then the evidence submitted by the prosecution is not valid and
cannot be recorded in court against the accused.
Written statement of accused
Examination of witnesses for the defence
Summary Trial
The legal provisions governing summary trials under the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973
are Section 260 to Section 265. Under Section 262 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973,
the procedure for summary trials has been laid down.The procedure followed for summon
cases has to be followed for summary cases as well. The exception in summary trials is,
that a sentence exceeding the duration of three months cannot be passed in case of
conviction under this Chapter.
The procedure for a summons case can be briefly stated as follows:
For a criminal procedure to begin, the first step is to file an FIR or a complaint. This is
investigated upon by the police and evidence is collected. At the end of the investigation, a
charge sheet is filed by the police. This is also called the pre-trial stage.
The accused person is then taken before the Magistrate who orally reads the particulars of
the offences to the accused. In summons and summary trials, a formal charge is not written
down.
The Magistrate after stating the particulars of the offence committed asks the accused if he
pleads guilty or not. If the accused person pleads guilty, the Magistrate makes a record of
the statement of the accused and then proceeds for conviction.
If the accused does not plead guilty, the trial begins. The prosecution and the defence are
given an equal opportunity to put their case forward. The Judge may then decide the
acquittal or the conviction of the accused.
In summary cases, the difference lies at this juncture. If the Judge delivers a judgment of
conviction of the accused – the maximum sentence that can be passed for imprisonment is
three months.
Record in summary trials
The procedure to formulate a record in summary trials is laid down in Section 263 of the
Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.
In all summary cases, the Magistrate has the duty to enter the following particulars, in the
following format prescribed by the State Government:
The serial number of the case;
The date when the offence was committed;
The date when the report or the complaint was filed;
The name of the complainant, if any;
The name, residence and parents’ name of the accused person;
The offence about which the complaint has been made and any proven offence (if it
exists);
The value of the property regarding which the offence has been committed, if the case
comes under Section 260(1) (ii) or Section 260(1) (iii) or Section 260(1) (iv) of the
Code;
The plea of the accused person and his examination, if any;
The finding of the Court;
The sentence or any other final order passed by the Court;
The date when the proceedings ended.
Judgment in cases tried summarily
Section 264 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 lays down how a judgment should be
in cases which are tried summarily. The Magistrate has the duty to record the substance of
the evidence along with a judgment containing a brief statement of the reasons for such
finding, in all summarily tried cases where the accused does not plead guilty. Under Section
326(3) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 the use of pre-recorded evidence by a
successor judge is barred in the instance when the trial has to be conducted summarily,
according to Section 262 to 265 of the Code.
In Shivaji Sampat Jagtap vs. Rajan Hiralal Arora, it was held by the Bombay High Court that
if the procedure mentioned in Section 263 and Section 264 of the Code has not been
particularly followed, then the succeeding Magistrate does not need to hold a trial de novo.
In this case, the petitioner filed a complaint under Section 138 of the Negotiable
Instruments Act, 1881. The Magistrate issued the process, summons to the accused was
served and consequently, his plea was recorded. But before the Magistrate could deliver the
judgment, he ceased to have jurisdiction and was succeeded by another Magistrate. The
new Magistrate delivered a judgment on the basis of evidence which was recorded by his
predecessor. An appeal was filed that the new Magistrate should have conducted a de novo
trial as contemplated under Section 326(3) as the predecessor had conducted the case as a
summary trial. As this was not done, it was contended that the entire proceeding was
vitiated. The Sessions Court then quashed the conviction. Therefore, this revision
application was filed. It was held by the Court that the present case was not tried
summarily. It was, in fact, tried as a summons case. Therefore, the impugned judgment
was quashed.
Session trial (225-237)

Process of session trial: Session Court deals with criminal matter at a district level. To be
more accurate these offences are of more serious nature, the session court does not have
the power to take cognizance only under Section 199 of the CrPC it can take cognizance
in all other cases the cognizance will be taken by Magistrate and commit the trail.
Initial Stage
It is very simple and easy to understand the initial stage with the help of the illustration–
In a courtroom, the public prosecutor will act as one side and the accused person will be the
other party in the matter. Here, the court expects that all the necessary documents need to
be given to an accused person in advance so he has a clear idea why the trail is being taken
place.
Public Prosecutor is appointed under Section 24 of the Act, who is acting under the direction
of such prosecutor.
When the case is brought under Section 209 of the CrPC then in those condition public
prosecutor needs to present the piece of evidence so the trail can be started without any
delay. All the details regarding what all charges are framed against him need to be
mentioned in a court of law. After this stage, if magistrate feels that there is no case
regarding the accused person then he will be discharged.
Second Stage of the Trial
If the accused person pleads his guilt then he will be punished as per the nature of
punishment and he will get convicted and if he did not plead then the court will fix a date
for going through a further process like examination of a witness, production of any
document etc. He needs to plead guilty from his own mouth, not by his pleader. Any
admission made by his leader is not binding in nature.The court needs to have all pieces of
evidence which are presented in the case and during the cross-examination stage.
Third Stage of the Trial
It is the last stage where the accused person is either convicted or acquittal. The court may
acquit the accused person if no evidence is laid down which indicate the involvement of the
accused in committing the Act. If no acquittal took place then, accused get the opportunity
to present his case through writing or any other means he can produce evidence, witnesses
to defend himself just like the way prosecution did it. An omission on the part of the Judge
is the failure of justice. An accused person can apply for an application for compelling the
attendance of a witness, all such application needs to be accepted by the court. He can only
deny in a situation where he is sure that such application is vexatious in nature just to
waste the precious time of the COURT
Summon trial (251-259)

Explanation of the particulars of the offence
Section 251 provides that it is not mandatory to frame charges but the section does not
dispense with the explanation of the particulars of the offence when accused is brought or
appear before the Court. This is done to make the accused cognizant for the allegations
made against him. If in case unable to convey the particulars than this will not vitiate the
trial and it will not lead to the prejudice with the accused as this irregularity is remediable
under section 465 of the code. Under section 251 courts shall ask the accused whether the
accused pleads guilty, and section 252 and 253 needs to comply for conviction on such plea
of guilty.
Conviction on plea of guilty
Section 252 and 253 provides conviction on the plea of guilty. Section 252 provides plea of
guilty in general and section 253 provides plea of guilty in case of the petty cases. In case
accused plead guilty, the answer is affirmative than in accordance with law court will record
the plea in the exact words of the accused on the basis of which accused can be convicted
on the Court’s discretion. If not affirmative than the court needs to proceed further with
Section 254. If the accused plead guilty, and the charges against him do not constitute any
offence than mere plea will not amount to the conviction of the accused. As the magistrate
has the discretion to convict on the plea or not, if on plea the accused is convicted than the
magistrate shall proceed according to section 360 otherwise hear the accused on the
question of sentence and sentence him according to law. If the plea of guilty is not accepted
than magistrate shall proceed according to section 254.
Procedure if the accused not convicted on plea
Section 254 provides about both prosecution and defence case if the accused not convicted
on plea under section 252 and 253.
Prosecution case
The magistrate will hear the accused and take all the evidence. In the hearing, the
prosecution will be given chance to open its case by putting facts and circumstances which
constitute the case and by revealing the evidence which he relied upon to prove the case.
The magistrate on the application of the prosecution, serve summon to any witness to
attend and to produce any document or thing. The magistrate will prepare the
memorandum of the evidence according to section 274. Same as other trials in summon
cases also the magistrate will comply with section 279 i.e., interpretation of evidence to the
accused and 280 i.e., recording of the demeanor of the witnesses.
Hearing of the defence: – (Defence Case)
After the prosecution evidence under 254 and examination of defence under section 313, in
the continuance of this, the court will proceed with the defence hearing under section
254(1). In the hearing of the defence means accused will be asked for accused say against
the prosecution evidence. Failure of hearing of the accused in any case will amount to the
fundamental error in the criminal trial and it can not be cured under section 465. Evidence
produced by the accused will be recorded in the same manner as in case of prosecution
under section 274, 279, 280. After the submission of the evidence of the defence, he will be
allowed to submit his arguments under section 314.
Acquittal or conviction
After recording the evidence under 254 the magistrate will acquit the accused if he finds the
accused not guilty. If the accused is guilty than Magistrate shall proceed according to
Section 360 or 325 otherwise, sentence him according to the law. According to section 256
on the date fixed for the appearance of the accused nonexistence of the complainant will
empower the court to acquit the accused unless the court has the reason to adjourn the
case to some other day. Section 256(1) is also applicable in case of the death of the
complainant↓. In case the representative of the dead complainant does not appear for 15
days where the defendant appeared, the defendant can be acquitted held by the Supreme
Court.
Judgement and Sentences under the Code
Judgement (353-360)
Form and contents of the judgment under Section 353 In a judgement Ratio decidendi
and Obiter dicta form an integral part. Ratio decidendi is the binding statement in
judgement and Obiter Dicta is the “by the way” remarks delivered by the judge which is not
necessary to the case at hand. These two are very important as they define the legal
principles which are useful to the legal fraternity.
If the judgement is of acquittal-
Whether the evidence of the prosecution absolutely failed to prove the guilt of the
accused or merely failed to prove it beyond a reasonable doubt.
If the act or omission from which the liability might arise doesn’t exist.
If the judgement is of conviction-
The essential elements of the offence committed by the accused and the intervening
circumstances which led to the commission of this offence.
Participation of the accused as the principal perpetrator, or accomplice or accessory.
The penalty that is imposed on the accused.
Language and contents of judgment
Under Section 354, of CrPC, it is stated that every judgement should be:
In the language of the Court, Shall contain the points of determination and the reason
for the same.
The offence should be specified and the reason for the same should be given for the
same. The offence so committed must be mentioned in the IPC or any other law under
which the crime is committed and the punishment is given.
If the offender is acquitted, the offence for which he was acquitted, the reason for the
same and it must be specified that a person is now a free man.
If the judgment is passed under the IPC and the judge is not certain as to under which
Section the offence is committed or under which part of the Section, the judge should
specify the same in the judgement and should pass orders in both the alternate
situations.
The judgement shall furnish a proper reason for the conviction if it is a sentence for a
term of life imprisonment and in case of death sentence the special reason has to be
given.
Judgment given by Metropolitan Magistrate under Section 355
Under Section 355 of the CrCP, it is mentioned that the judge instead of giving the
judgement in an above-mentioned way, can deliver it in an abridged version that would
contain-
The serial number of the case,
Date of the commission of the offence,
Name of the complainant,
Name of the accused person, his parentage and residence,
Offence complained of or proved,
Plea of the accused and his examination,
Final order,
Date of the order,
In cases where the appeal lies from the final order, a brief statement of reasons for the
decision.
Sentence of imprisonment
Under Section 354 of the CrPC, when the conviction is for an offence punishable with
imprisonment for life or imprisonment for a term of years, the judgment shall state the
reasons for the sentence awarded, and, in the case of the death sentence, the special
reasons for it. Moreover, when the conviction is for an offence punishable with imprisonment
for a term of one year or more, but the Court imposes a sentence of imprisonment for a
term less than three months, it shall record its reasons for the same, unless the sentence is
one of imprisonment till the rising of the Court or the case was tried summarily.
Sentence of fine
Under Section 357 of the Code, when a Court imposes a sentence of fine or a sentence in
which fine is also included then the Court while passing judgment may order the whole or
any part of the fine recovered to be applied:
In defraying the expenses incurred during the prosecution.
In the payment to any person as compensation for any loss or injury caused by the
offence, when compensation is recoverable in the Civil Court.
When any person is convicted of any offence for causing the death of another person or
have encouraged the commission of such an offence, have to pay compensation to the
persons who are, under the Fatal Accidents Act, 1855 entitled to recover damages from
the person sentenced for the loss resulting to them from such death.
When any person is convicted of any offence which includes theft, criminal
misappropriation, criminal breach of trust, or cheating, or dishonestly receiving or
retaining, or voluntarily assisting in disposing of stolen property knowing or believing the
same to be stolen then compensation has to be given to the bona fide purchaser of such
property for the loss of the same if such property is restored to the possession of the
person entitled.
If the fine is imposed in a case which is appealable, no such payment shall be made before
the period allowed for presenting the appeal has lapsed, or if an appeal is presented then
before the decision of the appeal is delivered.
Compensation for wrongful arrests under Section 358
Under Section 358, it is stated that in case a person compels the police to arrest another
person, which the Magistrate thinks that there is no ground for such arrest, the Magistrate
may order compensation not exceeding Rs 1000, to be paid by the person who causes such
arrest. The fine is given as a way of compensation for the loss of time and expenses or
other matter, as the judge may think fit. If more than one person is arrested on such basis,
then each of them should be awarded a compensation not exceeding Rs 100, as the
Magistrate thinks fit. Such compensation shall be recovered as a fine and if the person does
not pay the compensation then the Magistrate can sentence him to imprisonment not
exceeding 30 days unless the compensation is sooner paid.
Submission of Death Sentences for Confirmation

(366-371)
Submission for conformation to High Court (Section 366)

Section 366 partially answers the question of who can pass a verdict. This section provides
that if a Session Court passes the death sentence against the accused(s) then the High
Court needs to confirm it before it comes into effect. Thereby, it is necessary to submit the
proceedings before the High Court and only after confirmation from the High Court the
execution can be brought into effect, and not before that.
The death penalty is the highest level of punishment and it follows the principle of ‘rarest of
rare’ (uncommon crime or that is unusual to a person of ordinary prudence, the one which
shocks and causes tremors throughout the judiciary and the society). This section works as
a precautionary step to minimize the error while meeting the ends of justice.
The case of Bantu Son of Vidya Ram Bediya vs State Of U.P. (2006) was submitted to the
Allahabad High Court from Agra’s Sessions Court under Section 366 of CrPC. The accused
had committed the offence of rape, murder and kidnapping. The rape was so gruesome that
during the postmortem a stem of more than a feet was retrieved from her vagina which was
inserted by the accused while committing the offence. Allahabad High Court upheld the
death penalty of the accused stating that it was the rarest of rare case.
Further Sections provide the powers the High Court has in regard to cases submitted under
Section 366 of the CrPC.
Power to direct further inquiry to be made or additional

evidence to be taken (Section 367)
Sub-section (1) of Section 367 of the CrPC provides that when the proceeding for
confirmation of the death penalty is submitted to the High Court and it notices any point of
innocence or guilt of the accused, it may either direct the Sessions Court or itself to make
further inquiry into it or take additional evidence into consideration. It is usually done when
the High Court feels that the Sessions Court has missed some points or factors.
Sub-section (2) of Section 367 provides that the convict can be directed to dispense his/her
presence during such inquiry or taking of the evidence unless the High Court otherwise
directs.
Sub-section (3) of Section 367 provides that if the Sessions Court (authority other than the
High Court) makes the enquiry or takes into consideration such evidence then it shall be
certified by the Sessions Court.
In the case of Balak Ram Etc vs The State of U.P. (1974) the Supreme Court in the final
judgment stated that High Court had failed in properly considering the pieces of evidence of
the prosecutor’s witnesses and held that while inquiring against a death penalty case or
taking into consideration different pieces of evidence, the High Court shall take into
consideration all the pieces of evidence itself as it is its duty.
Power to the High Court to confirm sentence or annul

conviction (Section 368)
Section 368 provides that when a case is submitted to the High Court under Section 366 of
the Code of Criminal Code, the High Court may;
confirm the sentence passed by the Sessions Court, or pass a sentence other than the
one provided it is warranted by the law, or
annul the conviction passed by the Sessions Court, and instead either convict the
accused under any other offence for which the Session’s Court had convicted him/her or
order for a trial on an amended charge or on the same charge, or
acquit the accused of the charges made against him.
The proviso to the section states that till the time the limitation period to file an appeal
against the verdict is not expired, or the appeal is still pending or is not disposed of, the
Court cannot pass an order of confirmation. In the case of Kartarey and Ors. vs The State of
Uttar Pradesh (1975), the Sessions Court had passed the verdict announcing the death
sentence which was later altered by the High Court. When the case reached the Supreme
Court it was observed that the High Court has committed a grave error in examining the
evidence or additional evidence. It states that it is the duty of the High Court to ‘reap-
praise’ the evidence in totality and it shall come to a conclusion on the merits of the case
only after considering the proceedings in all their aspects. It is important and crucial to
consider the defence evidence equally and not to neglect it as this is contradictory to the
settled rule of practice and law.
Confirmation or new sentence to be signed by two judges

(Section 369)
Section 369 provides that whenever a case is submitted to the High Court under Section
366 of CrPC it shall be heard by a divisional bench i.e. at least by two or more judges. For
confirmation of:
the sentence, or
any new sentence, or
any order.
Passed by the High Court shall be ‘made, passed and signed’ by either two or more judges.
It is an essential condition that cannot be ignored.
General Provisions as to Inquiries and Trial
Mode of taking and Recording Evidence

Section 272 to 283 of CrPC read with rules under Chapter XII of General Rules and Circular
Order Volume I, explains the Mode of taking and recording Evidence in criminal cases. The
following are the modes of recording evidence:
Section 273– It is mandatory to record all the evidence only in the presence of the accused
when his personal attendance has been dispensed, the evidence must be recorded in the
presence of a pleader.
Section 274– Magistrate shall record a memorandum of the substance of evidence in the
court language and must be signed by the Magistrate.
Section 275(1)– In all the warrant cases, the evidence of each witness shall be in writing by
Magistrate or under his direction if the Magistrate is unable to do so due to some physical or
other incapacities, under his direction and superintendence, by the officer of the court who
is appointed by the Magistrate on his behalf. The evidence under this subsection is to be
recorded by audio-video electronic.
Section 275(3)– This section permits the Magistrate to record evidence in question and
answer form.
Section 276– In Session Court, the recording should be done in a narrative form. The
presiding officer at his discretion can take down any part of the evidence in question and
answer format which has to be signed by him
Section 278– When the evidence of a witness is completed, it should be read over to the
accused or his pleader. This shouldn’t be done at the end of the day when all the witnesses
have been examined. The evidence if needed can be corrected by the accused.
Section 280– The presiding judge or magistrate is empowered to record the remarks.
Marking of Exhibits
Some evidence shall be submitted by the prosecution, this evidence has to be marked with
the number in the order in which they are submitted. The documents that are admitted on
behalf of defence shall be marked with capital letter alphabets. If in case neither party does
not accept the evidence then the evidence shall be marked as Ext C-I, C-II etc.
If more than one number of documents are of similar nature, then the small letter or small
number is added in order to distinguish each document in the series. After the evidence is
proved and admitted it shall be marked with a Roman number. Example MO-I, MO-II etc.
the bench clerk of the court shall prepare the list of articles which shall be signed by the
Judge.
Cases
Javer Chand and Ors. V. Pukhraj Surana, 1961
In this case, it was held that the Court does not proceed further whenever an objection is
raised in the court without passing any order on such an objection. If there is an objection
on the stamp duty of a document, then objection will be decided then and there before
proceeding further.
State of Madhya Pradesh v. Budhram, 1995
In this case that accused was convicted for an offence under Section 302 of IPC and was
subjected to a death sentence. The conviction was set aside evidence was not recorded in
his presence, later the case was remanded back for trial.
Execution, Suspension, Remission and Commutation

of Sentences (432-435)
Execution of sentence of death

Execution of order passed under Section 368
Under Section 366 of the CrPC,1973, a session judge cannot execute a death sentence
without the confirmation of the High Court, till that time the convict has to be in jail
custody. The High Court, under Section 368 of the CrPC, looks into the case. The High Court
can:
Confirm the sentence given by the Session Court.
Annul the conviction and convict the accused of the same charges as that of the Session
Court or may order for fresh proceedings on the same or altered charges.
May acquit the person, as the time for the appeal has not lapsed yet or the appeal has
been disposed of.
Any order received by the Session Court from the High Court has to be executed by the
Session Court by way of issuance of a warrant. (Section 413 of the CrPC). Execution of
sentence of death passed by High court. Under Section 414 of the CrPC, if the High Court,
passes the order of death sentence in appeal or revision, the Session Court has to carry on
the order by issuing a warrant.
Suspension and remission of sentences

Constitutional provisions
The Constitution of India, vests a large amount of sovereign power in the President and the
Governor. Centre and the State are governed in the name of President and Governor
respectively. Under Article 72 of the Indian Constitution, the President has the power to
pardon, remit, suspend or commute any sentence.Under Article 72, the President has the
power to pardons, reprieves, respites or remission of punishment or to suspend remit or
commute the sentence of any person convicted of any offence:
In cases where the punishment is given by the court-martial. The Governor’s power to
remit, suspend or commute the sentence under the laws of the State, shall be given
precedence.
In cases where the power of executive extends.
In cases where the punishment is a death sentence.
Similarly, under Article 161 of the Constitution of India, these powers are conferred on the
Governor of the States. The Governor can pardon, reprieve, respite a punishment or
suspend, remit or commute the sentence, which is given on the basis of the laws prevalent
in the State, to which the executive power of the State extends. The difference between the
pardoning power of the President and that of the Governor is that the Governor does not
enjoy the power to grant pardon to a death sentence.
However, this power of the President is not absolute and depends on the consultation with
the council of ministers. This is not present in the Constitution but practically this process is
followed. Further, the Constitution does not provide for any mechanism to check the legality
of the decision taken by the President and the Governor while exercising their mercy power.
However, in the case of Epuru Sudhakar vs the State of Andhra Pradesh, a small leeway is
provided for judicial review of the mercy granting power of the President and the Governor
to rule out any sort of arbitrariness.
Commutation of sentence
In contrast to Suspension and Remission, which only affect the duration of the punishment
without interfering with the nature of the punishment, Commutation, on the other hand,
changes the nature of the punishment and converts it into a less severe form of
punishment. There is nothing to restrict the government to commutate a sentence, even if
it is as low as a fine. Under Section 433 of the CrPC, the appropriate government gets the
power to commutate the sentence in an appropriate case. Various sentences are eligible for
commutation, one of them is death sentence i.e.mercy plea.
Death sentence to any other punishment provided in the IPC.
Imprisonment for life to any other imprisonment not exceeding fourteen years or fine.
Sentence of rigorous imprisonment for simpler imprisonment which the person has been
sentenced or a fine.
Sentence for a simple sentence to a fine.
Commutation of death sentence has always been in the controversy, it raises an issue
regarding the basic human rights of the accused and on the other hand the impact of the
grave crime on the society. Section 433 of the CrPC gives the power to the government to
commutate the death sentence to a simpler sentence.
Most of the convicts of the death sentence, get their sentence reduced to 14 years of life
imprisonment in accordance with the provisions of CrPC.
Appeals (372-394)
An appeal is a tool given to the parties of a case to ensure justice is served and all the
parties are satisfied by the judgment. After hearing all the parties in a case, a competent
court pronounces the judgment and if the parties are not satisfied with the judgment they
have a right to appeal to a higher court. Such an appeal would give the aggravated party
another opportunity to present their case to a higher authority or the Appellate Court who
would judge the case with a fresh perspective and if there are any wrongdoings, they would
be corrected. When the verdict is unreasonable or not supported by evidence, or when
there is miscarriage of justice on any grounds, then such a verdict can be appealed.
Object and scope of appeals

Even though Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), does not define appeal, legally it is to be
understood as judicial review done by a higher court of a decree, order or judgment passed
by a subordinate court. The Cambridge dictionary defines appeal as “a request made to a
court of law or to someone in authority to change a previous decision.”
In case of no law for appeal
As already discussed appeal is neither an inborn right nor a vested right, but one which is
given by the statue itself. If there is no provision allowing an appeal for a case, then such
an appeal would not be allowed.
Appeals from convictions

Defendants convicted of an offence are not always satisfied with the judgment and may
think they have been wrongfully convicted. In such circumstances, they may ask a higher
court to review the judgment or order passed under Section 374 of the code. The typical
hierarchy of the state consists of:
The Trial Court or Court of Session;
The High Court;
The Supreme Court.
Appeal to the Court of Session

As per Section 374(3), when an order or decree for conviction is made in a trial conducted
by Metropolitan Magistrate or Assistant Session Judge or Magistrate of the first class or
Magistrate of the second class, then the convicted may appeal to the Court of Session. If a
sentence for conviction is made under Section 325 of the code, i.e after referring to the
Chief Judicial Magistrate, then such conviction can also be appealed to the Court of Session.
Lastly, when a convict is released on probation of good conduct or after admonition under
Section 360 of the code, the order may be appealed to the Court of Session.
Appeal to the High Court

According to Section 374(2) of the Code, any person convicted may appeal to the High
Court against a judgment passed by the Sessions Judge or an Additional Sessions Judge or
on a trial held by any other court wherein a sentence of imprisonment for 7 years or less
was passed. For instance, when a judgment is passed by the Sessions Judge, imprisoning
the defendant for 5 years, then such a defendant can appeal to the High Court if he thinks
the judgment was unfair.
Appeal to the Supreme Court

Section 374(1) of the Code, allows any person convicted by the High Court in its
extraordinary original criminal jurisdiction to appeal for the same in the Supreme Court of
India. According to Section 379 of the Code, where the High Court on appeal, reverse an
order of acquittal of the defendant and convicted him with imprisonment for not less than
10 years, life imprisonment or death penalty, the convict may appeal to the Supreme Court.
As per Article 132(2) of the Constitution of India, if the High Court is satisfied that there is a
substantial question of law which is in question, then an appeal can be made to the
Supreme Court from any judgment, decree or final order from any High Court within the
territory of India.
Reference and Revision (395-405)

The word “revision” has not been defined in CrPC, however, as per Section 397 of CrPC, the
High Court or any Sessions Judge have been empowered to call for and examine the
records of any proceeding satisfy oneself:
as to the correctness, legality, or propriety of any finding, sentence or order, whether

recorded or passed, and
as to the regularity of any proceedings of an inferior court.
Moreover, they have the powers to direct the execution of any sentence or an order to be
suspended. Not just this, but to even direct to release the accused on bail or on his own
bond if the accused is in confinement. They may even order an inquiry subject to certain
limitations.It is clearly evident that the appellant courts have been granted such powers so
as to obviate any failure of justice.
The Honourable Supreme Court of India, in the context of this provision, held in the case of
Amit Kapoor vs Ramesh Chander & Anr that “the revisional jurisdiction can be invoked
where the decisions under challenge are grossly erroneous, there is no compliance with the
provisions of law, the finding recorded is based on no evidence, material evidence is ignored
or judicial discretion is exercised arbitrarily or perversely.” The same Court, further
explaining this provision, held in the case of State Of Rajasthan vs Fatehkaran Mehdu that
“the object of this provision is to set right a patent defect or an error of jurisdiction or law
or the perversity which has crept in the proceeding.”
The High Court has the power to take up a revision petition on its own motion i.e. suo moto
or on the petition by an aggrieved party or any other party. The Allahabad High Court held
in the case of Faruk @ Gaffar vs State Of U.P. that “whenever the matter is brought to the
notice of the Court and the Court is satisfied that in the facts and circumstances of the case,
a case is made out for exercising the revisional powers suo motu, it can always do so in the
interest of justice.”
There are certain statutory limitations that have been imposed on the High Court for
exercising its revisional powers as per Section 401 of CrPC, however the only statutory
requirement to exercise this power is that the records of the proceedings are presented
before it, after which it is solely the discretion of the Court:
An accused is to be given due opportunity to hear him and on order cannot be passed
unless this is followed.
In instances where a person has forwarded a revisional application assuming that an

appeal did not lie in such a case, the High Court has to treat such application as an
appeal in the interests of justice.
An application of revision cannot be proceeded with if it has been filed by a party where
the party could have appealed but did not go for it.
The High Court, as well as the Sessions Court, may call for record of any proceeding of
any inferior criminal Court situated within its jurisdiction for the purpose of satisfying
itself as to the correctness, legality of propriety of any finding, sentence, etc. Thus, the
Sessions Judge could examine the question in relation to the inadequacy of sentence in
view of the powers conferred on him by Section 397(1) of CrPC.
The difference between the powers of the High Court and the Sessions Court being that the
Sessions Judge can only exercise revisional powers which he has called for by himself,
whereas the High Court has the power to take up a revisional matter by itself or when it is
brought to its knowledge. The powers of a Sessions Court are the same as that of the High
Court while dealing with revisional cases. The Madras High Court in the case S.
Balasubramaninan vs The State Of Tamil Nadu held that “a Sessions Judge can entertain an
application in revision against sentence and enhance the sentence in revision in certain
cases.” It has also been previously held by the Hon’ble Supreme Court in the case Alamgir
vs State of Bihar that “in respect of enhancement of sentence in revision the enhancement
can be made only if the Court is satisfied the sentence imposed by the trial Court is unduly
lenient, or that in passing the order of sentence, the trial court has manifestly failed to
consider the relevant facts”
Inherent Power of Court (482)

Section– 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure
“Nothing in this code shall be deemed to limit or affect the inherent powers of the High
court to make such orders as may be necessary to give effect to any order under the Code,
or to prevent abuse of the process of any court or otherwise to secure the ends of justice”.
Sec 482 of the CrPC deals with the inherent powers of the court. This section was added
by the Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Act of 1923, as the high courts were
unable to render complete justice even if the illegality was apparent. The inherent
jurisdiction may be exercised under this section, except under 3 circumstances, namely:
To secure the ends of justice.
To prevent abuse of the process of the court.
To give effect to an order under CrPC.
When can the inherent powers be exercised?
The jurisdiction is completely discretionary. The High Court has the power to refuse to
use its power.
The jurisdiction of High Court is not limited only to cases that are pending before the
High Court, and it can consider any case that comes to its notice (in appeal, revision or
otherwise).
Under Section of 248 of CrPC, when the aggrieved party is being unnecessarily harassed,
then this power can be implored if he has no other remedy open to him.
The High Court does not conduct a trial or appreciate evidence. This power of High Court
is limited to cases that compel it to intervene for preventing a palpable abuse of a legal
process.
The High Court has the right to provide relief to the accused even if he or she has not
filed a petition under section 482.
If any trial is pending before the apex court, and has been directed to the sessions judge
for the issuance a non- bailable warrant regarding an arrest of the Petitioner(s), this
power of High Court can not be exercised.
Section 482 of the CrPC specifies that the inherent power is not intended to scuttle
justice at the threshold, but to secure justice.
This power has to be exercised sparingly with circumspection and in the rarest of rare
cases, but it cannot be said that it should only be exercised in the rarest of rare cases.
The expression rarest of rare case may be exercised where death penalty is to be
imposed under Section 302 of IPC but this expression cannot be extended to a petition
under Section 482 CrPC.
Any proceeding if it finds that initiation to abuse of the process of Court, Court would be
justified to the quashing of these proceedings.
As long as the inherent power under Section 482 of CrPC is in the statute, the exercise of
such power is not impermissible.
Transfer of Criminal Cases (406-411)

Section 406 of the Code of Criminal Procedure confers the power upon the Supreme Court
to transfer cases and appeals. The Code grants the widest discretionary powers to the
Supreme Court to transfer any case or appeal lying before the High Court to any other High
Court of any state in the country in order to meet the ends of justice and fulfil the principle
of natural justice. The application requesting the transfer of any case or appeal pending
before the High Court can be moved to the Supreme Court by any of the following persons:
Who is under the apprehension of unfair trial by the court; or
Who is unable to find any proper justice being served to himself; or
Attorney General or Advocate General of India.
The power granted by the Code under Section 406 to the Supreme Court is purely
discretionary in nature and the applicant is under no obligation to conclusively establish that
in case the transfer does not take place then fair justice will not take place and the
applicant is only expected to reasonably substantiate the contentions made by him under
the application he has submitted to the Supreme Court. The application under Section 406
of the Code is made by the interested party should always be in the form of motion
supported by an affidavit or affirmation, except in the cases where the applicant is the
advocate general or attorney general of the country.
The power of the Supreme Court to transfer the cases and appeals also extends to the
transfer the cases from any subordinate court in the country where any matter is pending.
However, the court where the case is pending can ensure that the Supreme Court, while
transferring the case is taking all the measures to uphold fairness and principles of natural
justice. The parties in any suit are always guaranteed the opportunity to bring to the notice
of any court with appropriate jurisdiction that there are reasonable grounds which uphold
the apprehension in the mind of the person that certain factors inhibit his right to a fair
trial.
In Vishwanath Gupta v. State of Uttar Pradesh, the applicant filed an application for the
transfer of a case on the contention that he was under the apprehension that he wouldn’t
be able to engage a counsel in the court where a case against him was already pending in
the case. However, the District Bar Association submitted an application assuring the court
that a defence counsel from among the members of the Bar Association would be made
available to the applicant. The Supreme Court held the application to be invalid dismissing
the prayer for the transfer.
In Sukhdev Singh Sodhi vs The Chief Justice And Judges of The PEPSU High Court, the court
held that the power of transferring of cases with the Supreme Court does not extend to
transfer of any contempt proceeding which is pending before the High Court.
The power of transfer of cases and appeals is not only discretionary but is also limited as
Section 406 does not clothe the Supreme Court with the power to transfer investigation
pending before one police station to another for the only reason being the forwarding of FIR
to the court. In cases where the Supreme Court is of the opinion that the application made
is frivolous in nature and is devoid of any substantial claim then it may order the party
which came up with the application to pay compensation of not more than one thousand
rupees to the party which opposed such application.
In Kaushalya Devi v. Mool Raj, the Supreme Court held that in cases where the application
of transfer of the case is made but the Magistrate dealing with the case opposes the
application by himself filing an affidavit then the transfer of the case, without any doubt in
the complete interest of justice because in all such cases the essentials of fair and impartial
trial are already put to peril which is signified by the personal involvement of the judge
himself.
Grounds for transfer of appeal and cases
To uphold the spirit of justice: The ultimate goal of any judicial system on the earth is
the deliverance of justice and protection of the rights of every person. The courts are
highly revered institutions of justice with people having high expectations of justice
which is sought after by the aggrieved party. Therefore, the court is under high moral
obligations for keeping the machinery of justice, equity and good conscience alive.
Recommendations made by the superior judicial officers: The courts while deciding
whether to transfer the cases and appeals from one court to another takes into
consideration the inquiries and findings as revealed by the reports carried on by the
senior judicial officers such as Chief judicial magistrate or any sessions judge.
Upon request by the trial court: Where the court before which the matter is pending
deems the case to be outside its scope of jurisdiction due to involvement of a substantial
question of law which is outside its purview. It may request the higher judiciary to
transfer the case.
Lack of complete jurisdiction: In certain cases, the court has limited jurisdiction over
the subject matter of the case before it. In such cases of shared or limited juridical
issues, the court trying the case has the liberty of transferring the case to the court
which possesses the conclusive jurisdiction of trying the matter. This process ensures
that complete justice has been done to the parties before the court.
Differences between the party and the judicial officer: In circumstances where
there is already a presence of differences between the judicial officer and any of the
party the chances of an unfair and partial trial being carried out are relatively higher.
Therefore, the party apprehending such consequences of carrying on of the trial is
granted the opportunity by the judicial system to apply for transfer of the case.
Infringement of principles of natural justice: Where the proof of continued

contravention of the principles of natural justice by any court or judicial officer is
rendered by a party to the Supreme Court, then in order to uphold the principles of
natural justice, the court may order the transfer of the case.
The very purpose of Criminal law is the free and fair dispersal of justice which is not
influenced by any extraneous considerations. Section 407 of the Code of Criminal
Procedures enables the party to seek for transfer of case anywhere within the state while
Section 406 of the Code enables the party to seek transfer of the case anywhere in the
country.
Circumstances in which HC may order the transfer of a case or appeal
The High Court has the authority to transfer the cases when it is satisfied that:
The right to a fair and impartial trial which is guaranteed under Article 21 of the Indian
Constitution can not be exercised by any of the party to the suit if the case is tried by any
of the courts which is subordinate to it; Certain questions pertaining to the present matter
in the court are of unusual difficulty; The transfer of the appeal or the case is made
inevitable by any of the provisions under the Code; The order of transfer will be in the
interest of the general convenience of the parties or witnesses involved in the suit.
Plea Bargaining (265-A)

A sense of confidence in the courts is essential to maintain the fabric of ordered liberty for a
free people and three things could destroy that confidence and do incalculable damage to
society: The first being that people come to believe that inefficiency and delay will drain
even a just judgment of its value.
The above statement, written by Warren E. Burger, in an address to the American Bar
Association point to the importance of timely justice in a free society. The biggest problem
that Indian justice system is facing is the huge backlog of cases. Noted jurist Nani Palkiwala
rightly said, “The law may or may not be an ass, but in India, it is certainly a snail”. More
than three crore cases are languishing in the Courts for various reasons. .One of the major
reason behind this abysmally low disposal of cases by Judiciary is the lack of number of
judges in the respective courts. Apart from huge backlog of cases, the conviction rate in our
country is also very low hence the credibility of judgment is doubted. Judicial process is
additionally time consuming, cumbersome and expensive.
All these problems call for an alternative. A way that would lead to speedy trial and efficient
sentencing. A proposed alternative to this would be bringing the opportunity of plea
bargaining into the Indian Criminal Justice System.
Plea Bargaining can be described as “pre-trial negotiations between the accused and the
prosecution during which the accused agrees to plead guilty in exchange for certain
concessions by the prosecution.”They are also referred as plea agreement, plea deal or
copping a plea. The procedure for a plea bargain is simple – A bargain or deal is struck
between the accused and the prosecution whereby, the accused will agree to plead guilty to
the charge when enquired by the trial Judge and in return will get a lesser sentence or
plead guilty to one or more charge in return for the promise that the other charges will be
dropped against him. The trial Judge takes an active part in this process.
In the US, plea bargaining was introduced in the 19th Century and has proved to be very
successful. It has been an integral part of their justice system. Though Plea Bargaining has
not specifically been mentioned in their Constitution, its legality has been upheld in their
judicial pronouncements. Today, almost 90 to 95% of criminal cases in the US are disposed
off by plea bargaining rather than jury trial.
Procedure For Plea Bargaining

Plea Bargaining can happen in a number of ways:
The Law Commission of India advocated the introduction of plea bargaining in India (even
though the Supreme Court vehemently opposed it) in its 142nd, 154th and 177th reports.
The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act of 2005 introduced a chapter XXI A into the Criminal
Procedure Code, 1973. This came into effect on 5th July 2006. It allows plea bargaining to
be used in the following circumstances–
1. Only for those offences that are punishable with imprisonment below 7 years.
2. If the accused has been previously convicted for a similar offence by any court, then
he/she will not be entitled to plea bargaining.
3. Plea Bargaining is not available to offences which might affect the socioeconomic
conditions of the country. For eg, for offences under the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961,
Commission of Sati Prevention Act, 1987, Juvenile Justice (Care and protection of
Children) Act, 2000
4. It is also not available if the offence if committed against a woman or child below 14
years.
5. Plea Bargaining is not available for serious offences such as murder, rape
Plea Bargaining Can Happen In The Following Ways –
Withdrawal of one or more charges against an accused in return for a plea of guilty
Reduction of a charge from a more serious charge to a lesser charge in return of a plea
of guilty
Recommendations by prosecutor to sentencing judges for lesser sentence in lieu of plea

of guilty.
It may happen in many cases that the accused entering into plea bargaining may not do so
voluntarily. Therefore, to ensure that the plea bargaining has happened in a proper way and
justice has been ensured, the Court must adhere to the following minimum requirements,
The hearing must take place in Court
The Court must satisfy itself that the accused is voluntarily pleading guilty and there is
no existence
of coercive bargaining to the prejudice of the accused
Any Court rejecting a plea bargaining application must be kept confidential to prevent
prejudice to the accused.
Case laws under crpc
1. ”In the case of Babu vs State of Kerala, The Court observed that Public Prosecutors are
ministers of justice who is duty bound to assist the judge in the administration of justice.
(PUBLIC PROSECUTOR UNDER FUNCTIONARY)
2. In the case of V.C. Shukla vs. State, Justice Desai, while delivering the conclusive
judgement opined, “the purpose of framing a charge is to give intimation to the accused
of clear, unambiguous and precise notice of the nature of the accusation that the accused
is called upon to meet in the course of a trial.” ( CHARGE)
3. The charge sheet made by the Police correlates and mentions the complaint of that
private individual on which the criminal proceedings have taken place. Submission of the
Charge sheet by the police officer reflects that the initial investigation and preparation
regarding the same case are done and now Magistrate can take offence committed under
his consideration as stated in Rama Shankar v. State [AIR 1956 All 525] (POLICE
REPORT)
4. Abhinandan Jha v Dinesh Mishra (AIR 1968 SC 117) It has been opined that the
Magistrate is not entitled to order an investigation by a senior police officer in charge of
the police station. In this case, the court observed that the creation of the opinion by the
police officer by whom or under whom the investigation took place, is the final step in
the investigation and that final step is to be taken by the police and not by any other
authority. Thus, there is no power expressly or impliedly given under the provisions to a
magistrate to call upon the police to submit a charge-sheet. When the police officer has
sent a report under Section 169 that there is no case can be made from the following
report to send the accused for trial, in that case the charges are to be made by the
Magistrate to keep in mind the report submitted by the police as per Section 228 and
Section 240 of CrPC. (INVESTIGATION)
5. In the case of Narotamdas L. Shah v. Pathak Nathalal Sukhram And Anr., the accused
was held liable for defamation to which the witnesses were cross examined and the
Magistrate was of the view that the case should be transferred while the accused
demanded a re-hearing of the witnesses to which the Magistrate said that the accused
can only have this right when the case is in trial and the case here was at the stage of
enquiry only. The judge of the Sessions Court was of the view that setting aside of the
demand made by the accused was wrong. The Gujarat High Court in this case held that
trial in warrant cases starts when the accused has been presented before the Magistrate
and thus quashing the order of the Magistrate. (TRIAL)
6. The principle of natural justice should be considered in respect of both the parties. Right
to a speedy trial is recognized in the case Huissainara khatoon vs Home Secretary, State
of Bihar, the court held- “the trial is to be disposed of as expeditiously as possible”.
(RIGHT OF AN ARRESTED PERSON)
7. Amiya kumar v. state of west Bengal 1978 Cri.LJ 288 In the instant case, it was held that
section 438 of the code empowers both the high court and the session’s court to grant
the anticipatory bail. Both the high court and the Sessions court have the competency to
grant this bail. If the Sessions court rejects the petition filed by the applicant for the
anticipatory bail then he can’t file the petition for the same in the high court.
(PROCEDURE OF BAIL)
8. In the case of K. Satwant Singh v. State Of Punjab AIR 1960 SC 266, that the
sections of joinder of charges are not compelling in nature. They only permit the joint
trial of charges under certain circumstances, and the courts may consider the same in
the interest of the administration of justice after thoroughly studying the facts and
circumstances of each case. (JOINDER OF CHARGES)
9. In the case of Reg vs. Benito Lopez(1), the issue related to the jurisdiction of English
England borne ships was questioned. It was held that the country which tried the
accused did not go beyond its jurisdiction. The decision highlighted the important
principle of International Law that a person is liable to be punished of all such offences,
which he has committed irrespective of the place where it is committed.
(JURISDICTION OF CRIMINAL COURTS)
10. In the case of State of Himachal Pradesh V. Krishan Lal Pradhan, 1987, the Supreme
Court held that there was sufficient relevant material on record and the prima facie of
the case was established by one judge. But the succeeding judge came to the decision on
the same materials that no charge could be established and therefore, an order of
discharge was passed. But it was held by the Supreme Court that no succeeding judge
can pass an order of discharge. (WARRANT TRIAL)
11. In the case of State of Punjab vs Kala Ram @ Kala Singh (2018), the Court held that
under Section 366(2) of CrPC the court while passing the conviction shall grant the jail
custody of the convicted person under a warrant i.e. the person shall be kept in custody
and not as a punishment. The ‘safe keeping’ in jail custody is the limited jurisdiction of
the jailor. It is a trusteeship in the hands of the Superintendent, and not an
imprisonment in a real sense. (SUBMISSION OF DEATH SENTENCE)
12. Javer Chand and Ors. V. Pukhraj Surana, 1961 In this case, it was held that the Court
does not proceed further whenever an objection is raised in the court without passing
any order on such an objection. If there is an objection on the stamp duty of a
document, then objection will be decided then and there before proceeding further.
(GENERAL PROVISIONS AS TO INQUIRY AND TRIAL)
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CRPC Law Notes

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7/13/23, 2:13 PM CRPC law notes

CRPC law notes

Image source: https://rb.gy/5btnyi

Why do we need Criminal Procedure Law?

0.1. What is an Offence?

0.11. Provision of bail under the code (436-450)

Types of Criminal Offences:

Cognizable and Non-Cognizable offence

Functionaries under crpc

Hierarchy of court ( section 6-23)

The setup of criminal courts in district areas is at 3 levels: –

Judicial magistrate second class

Special magistrate court

Additional courts of sessions

Assistant courts of sessions

Chief Judicial Magistrate/Chief Metropolitan Magistrate exercises supervisory authority or

Classes of criminal courts

Judicial Magistrates of the second class; and

Hierarchy of Criminal Courts

Lower Courts of India have been classified as follows:

Chief Metropolitan Magistrate

First Class Metropolitan Magistrate

First Class Judicial Magistrate

Second Class Judicial Magistrate

Separation of Judiciary from the Executive

Judicial Magistrate shall exercise the functions relating to matters in which

Court of Judicial Magistrate

Chief Judicial Magistrate and Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate

Sub-Divisional Judicial Magistrate

Special Judicial Magistrates

Local Jurisdiction of Judicial Magistrate

Subordination of judicial magistrate

Courts of Metropolitan Magistrate

Special metropolitan magistrates

Subordination of Metropolitan Magistrate

As executive magistrates are supposed to execute administrative functions they were

Local jurisdiction of the executive magistrate

Subordination of executive magistrate

Police as functionary (sec 36)

Public prosecutor (section 24 to 25 A)

The functions of the Public Prosecutor differ according to their designation.

Chief Prosecutor- supervise the functions exercised by Assistant Public Prosecutor in

Additional Prosecutor- conduct criminal proceedings in the Session Court.

The objective of establishing a Directorate of Public Prosecutors is to supervise and

Reasons for the Appointment of Public Prosecutor

Equality before law

Protection against double jeopardy

Protection against self-incrimination

Protection against ex-post law

Right to life and personal liberty except procedure established by law

Presumption of innocence until proven guilty

Arrest and detention must be in accordance with the provisions of Cr.P.C.

Equal protection of laws

Right of accused to remain silent

Defence council as a functionary

Basic concepts and definition

Bailable and non-bailable offences [2(a)]

Cognizable and non-cognizable offences (154)

Information in cognizable cases.

Every information relating to the commission of a cognizable offence, if given orally to an

Police report [173(2)]

Types of Police Reports

Supplemental police reports