READING MATERIAL

CODE OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE

MODULE – I: Introduction

This module will provide an overview of the different stake holders of the criminal justice system
and the key definitions and territorial jurisdictions of criminal courts.

1.1. Historical Development: Objectives of the Criminal Procedure.(Theory)-

1.2. Essential Definitions under the Code:- Bailable offence, Non-bailable

offence,Cognizable,NonCognizableoffence,Complaint,Inquiry,Investigation,Judicial Proceedings,
Police Report, ;Summons Cases, Warrants Case, Consecutive And Concurrent Sentences-
Territorial division,

1.3. Hierarchy, Powers and Duties of Criminal Courts-

1.4. Stake holders in Criminal Justice System and their duties: Police, Court, Prosecution, Defense,
Correctional Administration.

Skill Takeaway: Analytical Skills

Parameter: Self-Management

1.1 HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT OF CODE OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE

During the initial years of colonial rule, East India Company did not have its own courts. Civil
and criminal justice was under the rulers of different provinces. Some Indian states even had
different courts for different religions, but after the British conquest of Bengal the system started
becoming more uniform. In the last decade of the 18th century, Lord Cornwallis made changes in
the criminal justice system and British judges replaced their Indian counterparts in Fauzdari
Adalats. As the Raj expanded, courts were established in different parts of India. The code of
criminal procedure was enacted for the first time in 1861 as part of a series of criminal law
reforms undertaken by the Raj in the wake of the 1857 mutiny. That the 1861 CrPC was
designed to rein in rebellious natives was evident from the immunity it conferred on whites from
the criminal jurisdiction of district courts. Only high courts could then try European British
subjects. In an incremental reform, the next version of CrPC enacted in 1872 provided that a
magistrate could try a European British subject if he was himself one. The next landmark in
codification was the 1882 CrPC which empowered Indian magistrates too to exercise

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jurisdiction over whites but they could do so only in presidency towns. The CrPC of 1898
contained further reforms towards providing a uniform law of criminal procedure for the whole
of India. The British legacy in this respect was carried on by independent India till CrPC was
recast again in 1973, yielding the present code. There have since been at least seven major
amendments to the code.

Barring Jammu & Kashmir and parts of northeast, CrPC applies to the whole of India and to all
persons irrespective of their religion or nationality. It lays down the procedure for investigation,
inquiry and trial of all offences that fall under the Indian Penal Code 1860 and other criminal
laws.

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1.2. Definitions

Offence- Any act which causes violation to the right of others, or causes harm to the other and
affects the society at large is an offence. According to Section 2(n) of the code of criminal
procedure, "offense" means any act or omission made punishable by any law for the time being
in force and includes any act in respect of which a complaint may be made under Section 20 of
the Cattle-trespass Act, 1871. Section 40 of IPC defines the word “offence as a thing made
punishable by this Code.

Bailable offence Section 2(a): - Bailable offences are those offences or crimes that are not very
serious in nature. In such cases bail is a right and the arrested person must be released after
depositing the bail with the police. It is shown as bailable in the First Schedule of CRPC. The police
have the power to grant bail in such cases.
Non-bailable offence, S 2(a); Non-bailable offences are generally serious offences where bail
is a privilege and only the courts can grant it. On being arrested and taken into custody for a non-
bailable crime, a person cannot ask to be released on bail as a matter of right. . As per Section
2(a) of CrPC, non-bailable offence includes all those offences which are not included inbailable
offence in the First Schedule. Examples of Non-Bailable Offence: –Murder (Section 302) IPC,
Dowry Death (Section 304-B) IPC etc.

Difference between Bailable and Non-Bailable Offence

Bailable Offence Non-Bailable Offence

Bailable offence means an offence which is Non-Bailable Offence means

shown as bailable in the First Schedule or any other offence.

which is made bailable by any other Law for
the time being in force.

Bailable offences are regarded as less grave Bailable offences are grave and serious
and less serious. offences, For example- offence of
murder.

Under bailable offences, bail is claimed Under Non-bailable offences, bail is a

as a matter of right. matter of discretion.

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Cognizable Offenses/ Case S 2© :- It means an offence for which, and “cognizable case” means
a case in which, a police officer may, in accordance with the First Schedule or under anyother law
for the time being in force, arrest without warrant. Section 2(c) of Cr.P.C. defines it to be an offence
in which thepolice officer can arrest the convict without a warrant and can start investigation without
the due permission of the court. The offences which are cognizable in nature is mentioned in the
First Schedule . Offences in any other law other that IPC, can be categories as cognizable or non-
cognizable if not indicated in such laws, as per Table II of 1st Schedule. In case of a cognizable
offence, it is the responsibility of the State (and the police) to bring the offender to justice

Non-cognizable offence / Case S 2(l), means a case in which, a police officer has no authority
to arrest without warrant; or the power to investigate into such an offence without the authority
given by a Judicial Magistrate. Non-cognizable offencesare considered more in the nature of
private. A Judicial Magistrate considers it desirable that a non-cognizable case should be
investigated into by the police, he can order the police to do so

Complaint S 2 (d):

The provision relating to “Complaints to Magistrate” are dealt under Section 200-203 of Chapter
XVof CRPC. Complaint means any allegation made orally or in writing to a Magistrate, with a
viewto his taking action under this Code, that some person, whether known or unknown, has
committed an offence, but does not include a police report. It may include both a Cognizable or
non-cognizable offense. A complaint need not necessarily be made by the person injured but
may be made by any person aware of the offence.

Ganesha vs. Sharanappa & Anr AIR 2014 SC 1198

In this case the court observed and clarified that the difference to the “complainant” &
“informant” u/ CrPC. Informant gives information of cognizable offences to police, while
complaint is made to magistrate. If such complaint is of cognizable case, the Magistrate may
order the police to investigate, otherwise proceed himself.

A common error creeping in many of the judgments including the present one. No distinction
is made while using the words ‘informant’ and ‘complainant’. In many of the judgments, the
person giving the report under Section 154 of the Code is described as the ‘complainant’ or the
‘de facto complainant’ instead of ‘informant’, assuming that the State is the complainant. These
are not words of literature. In a case registered under Section 154 of the Code, the State is the
prosecutor and the person whose information is the cause for lodging the report is the
informant. This is obvious from sub-section (2) of Section 154 of the Code which, inter alia,
provides for giving a copy of the information to the ‘informant’ and not to the ‘complainant’.
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 However the complainant is the person who lodges the complaint. The word ‘complaint’ is
defined under Section 2(d) of the Code to mean any allegation made orally or in writing to a
Magistrate and the person who makes the allegation is the complainant, which would be evident
from Section 200 of the Code, which provides for examination of the complainant in a
complaint-case. Therefore, these words carry different meanings and are not interchangeable.
In short, the person giving information, which leads to lodging of the report under Section 154
of the Code is the informant and the person who files the complaint is the complainant. In the
result, we allow this appeal, set aside the order of the High Court and decline to direct re-
hearing by the trial court.

Inquiry :- As per section 2(g) of the CRPC 1973, inquiry means every inquiry other than a
trial conducted under crpc by a Magistrate or court. The main objective of inquiry is to extract
valuable information and such information that helps to prove whether the offence committed
was criminal in nature. It is different from a Trial.
Bandela Ailaiah vs State Of Andhra Pradesh 1995 CrLJ 1083 (AP)
In this case the court observed that , no provision of the Act uses the word 'trial' of the charge or
the offence against a delinquent juvenile. On the other hand, both Section 20 and Section 39 of the
Act, in particular, use the expression 'inquiry'. There appears to be a big motto between the true
meaning of 'inquiry' and 'trial' in the legal parlance and expression. 'Inquiry' is defined in Section
2(g) of Cr.P.C. but not the 'trial'. It is said that 'trial' is not defined in any law for the time being in
force and on the other hand, it is explained by legal precedents. The definition of 'inquiry' is : every
inquiry other than a trial conducted under this Code by a Magistrate or Court (S. 2(g) of Cr.P.C.).
The definitive intent is thus manifesto to exclude 'trial' from the expression 'inquiry'.

Investigation S 2(h)- Investigation incorporates all the procedures under this Code for the
ascertainment of proof led by a Police or by any individual (other than a Magistrate) who is
approved by a Magistrate for this benefit.

Judicial proceedings S 2(i) includes any proceeding in the course of which evidence is or maybe
legally taken on oath.

Police report S2(r) is a report forwarded by a Police Officer to a Magistrate under sub section

(2) of Section 173 . Police reports act as a factual summary of an incident in order to investigate
crimes . It culminates the investigation process in a formal recommendation for action.

Victim S 2 (wa) : means a person who has suffered any loss or injury caused by reason of theact
or omission for which the accused person has been charged and the expression “victim” includes
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his or her guardian or legal heir. New clause (wa) in Section 2 has been added by Section 2 of the
CrPC (Amendment) Act, 2008. It treats all persons, including the family of thevictim as the victim
since they might suffer harm in the process of intervention to assist the victim or stop the
victimization. So, this definition tries to cover several rights of the victim aswell as of the family.

Satya Pal Singh Vs. State of M.P., 2015 ALL SCR 3523=2016(1) SCC 691

It was held in this case that the father of the deceased girl alleged to have been killed by her
husband and the relatives of the husband is a “victim” u/ s.2(wa) as he has suffered loss and
injury by losing his daughter, and has a right to file an appeal as a victim aggrieved by the
acquittal of the accused persons u/ s.372 CrPC.

Scania Commercial Vehicles India pvt. Ltd & others v. State of Karnataka & others.

The Karnataka High Court has said that the word 'victim' under Section 2(wa) of CrPC would
include his or her legal heirs and they would have the locus to continue the criminal case in
case of victim's death, before Police files the chargesheet.

Public prosecutor, S2(u) ; He is an officer of the Court and his primary duty is to assist the
Court in arriving a the truth by putting forth all the relevant material on behalf of the
Prosecution.

While discharging these duties, he must act in a manner that is fair to the Court, to the
investigating agencies, as well to the accused. Public Prosecutor is entrusted with the
responsibility of conducting the prosecution of a case. That this is a crucial role is evident from
conditions such as in Section 24(7), which stipulates a minimum legal experience of seven
years for a person to be eligible to be a Public Prosecutor. It is further clear from a jointreading
of Section 301 and the proviso to Section 24(8) that the two provisions are mutually
complementary. There is no bar on the victim engaging a private counsel to assist the
prosecution, subject to the permission of the Court.

Summons Cases, Warrant Case, S 2(W) (X) ;

Warrant case is defined to mean a case relating to an offence punishable with death,
imprisonment for life or imprisonment for a term exceeding two years.

A summons-case means a case relating to an offence, not being a warrant-case.

Difference between Summons Case and Warrants case

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 1. The Code of Criminal Procedure prescribes two procedures for the trial of a warrant case by
Magistrates, namely, one adopted by the Magistrate in case instituted on a Police Report while
the other in case instituted otherwise than on a Police Report. But in trial of summon case, only
one procedure followed, whether instituted on a Police Report or a complaint.

2. The procedure for summons cases is simpler and speedier. While the procedure for warrant
cases is complicated and slower.

3. In summons cases where the personal attendance of the accused has dispensed with1, the court
should have a power to dispense with his examination.
4. In warrant case, framing of a formal charge necessary. In summon case, framing of a formalnot
necessary in a summons case.
Consecutive Sentence S 31

A consecutive sentence is when jail terms run one after the other.
Ex In the scenario above, X willserve a total of 5 years. He will serve the 2 years for theft and then
after that serve the further 3years for criminal breach of trust.

Concurrent Sentence S 31

A concurrent sentence is when the sentences are allowed to overlap. In the scenario above, X will
serve a total of 3 years as his 2-year imprisonment for theft will be served together with his3-year
sentence for criminal breach of trust.
The general principle is that when the conviction is for multiple, separate offences, the term of
imprisonment will run consecutively.

Gagan Kumar vs The State of Punjab (AIR 2019 SC 1009)

The appellant was prosecuted and eventually convicted for the offences punishable under Sections
279 and 304−A of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (hereinafter referred to as “IPC”) in CHI 88530
of 2013 by the Judicial Magistrate 1st Class, Jalandhar by order dated 12.05.2017. On the quantum
of sentence, the Judicial Magistrate passed the following order:
Under Section To undergo rigorous 279 of IPC imprisonment for six months and to pay a fine of
Rs.1000/− and in default of payment of fine to undergo simple imprisonment for fifteen days.

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Under Section 205 or under Section 540-A
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Under Section To undergo rigorous 304−A of IPC imprisonment for two years and to pay a fine
of Rs.1000/− and in default of payment of fine to undergo simple imprisonment for one month.
Felt aggrieved by the said order, the appellant(accused) filed CRA/324/2017 before the
Additional Sessions Judge, Jalander. By order dated 08.12.2017, the Additional Sessions Judge
dismissed the appeal and affirmed the order passed by the Judicial Magistrate. The appellant
(accused) felt aggrieved by the aforementioned order and filed revision in the High Court of
Punjab & Haryana at Chandigarh. The High Court, by impugned order, dismissed the revision
and upheld the conviction and sentence awarded by the Courts below. The appellant (accused)
felt aggrieved and filed the present appeal by way of special leave in this Court. So, the short
question, which arises for consideration in this appeal, is whether the Courts below were justified
in convicting the appellant.
The only submission made by the learned counsel for the appellant was that the Judicial
Magistrate while passing the order of sentence erred in not mentioning therein as to whether
the two punishments awarded to the appellant under Section 279 and Section 304−A IPC would
run concurrently or consecutively.
In such a situation, it was necessary for the Magistrate to have specified in the order by taking
recourse to Section 31 of the Code as to whether the punishment of sentence of imprisonment
so awarded by her for each offence would run concurrently or consecutively. Indeed, it being
a legal requirement contemplated under Section 31 of the Code, the Magistrate erred in not
ensuring its compliance while inflicting the two punishments to the appellant.
If the Magistrate failed in her duty, the Additional Sessions Judge and the High Court should
have noticed this error committed by the Magistrate and accordingly should have corrected it.
It was, however, not done and hence interference is called for to that extent.
In the view of the Court, having regard to the facts and circumstances of the case and keeping
in view the nature of controversy involved in the case, both the aforementioned sentences
awarded by the Magistrate to the appellant would run "concurrently".

1.2 Territorial division, hierarchy, powers and duties of Criminal Courts. (S 6-23, 26-31)
Territorial division, hierarchy of Criminal courts

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Section 6 of Cr.P.C. envisaged that there shall be the following classes of criminal Courts, viz.,
Courts of Session; Judicial Magistrates of the first class, Judicial Magistrates of the second class,and
the Executive Magistrates. In the Metropolitan area, the hierarchy is Metropolitan SessionsJudge,
and Metropolitan Magistrates. This is apart from the High Courts and the Supreme Court.

Section 6 of Cr.P.C. refers to the classes of Criminal Courts to be constituted in every State,
besides the High Courts and other Courts constituted under any other law. Following are the
Criminal Courts constituted Under the provision of Cr.P.C.:-

Court of Session: The State Government for every session division establishes the Court
of the session, which is presided over by a Judge appointed by the High Court of
particular State. The Additional Sessions Judges and Assistant Sessions Judges may also
appointed by the High Court in this Court [Section 9 Cr.P.C., 1973]. The procedure of

trials before a Session Court are mentioned in Chapter XVIII of Cr.P.C. [Sections 225 to237].
Every trial before the Session Court is conducted by a public prosecutor 2
• Court of Sessions:- The Court of Sessions (which includes the Sessions Court,
Additional Sessions Court and the Assistant Sessions Court) shall have to be presided over
by a single judge. The Sessions Judge of one sessions division may be appointed by the
High Court to be the Additional Sessions Judge of another Sessions Division, though in
practice, the High Court does not so appoint a sessions judge of a division to be the
additional sessions judge of another sessions division.
When the sessions judge is not able to discharge the functions owing to indisposition or
non- availability, his duties can be discharged by the Additional Sessions Judge, and in his

2
[Section225 of Cr.P.C.].
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 absence by the Assistant Sessions Judge, and also in his absence, by the Chief Judicial
Magistrate of the area.
Section 9, Cr.P.C. further contemplates that the High Court may constitute as many
Assistant Sessions Courts as are necessary .
The Sessions Judge, the Additional Sessions Judge(s) and the Chief Judicial Magistrate
have territorial jurisdiction over the entire sessions division, while other courts including
Assistant Sessions Judges, Munsif Magistrates, Metropolitan Magistrates and Special
Magistrates have territorial jurisdiction over the area as decided by the High Court from
time to time in consultation with the State Government.
Courts of Judicial Magistrates: In every district (not being a metropolitan area) the
state may after consultation with the High Court, establish as many Courts of Judicial
Magistrates of the first and second class 3 The Judicial Magistrate of the First Class is
appointed as the Chief Judicial Magistrate by the High Court of the particular State.The
Chief Judicial Magistrate defines the local limits of the areas within which the
Magistrates exercise the powers vested in them under Cr.P.C. The Code also
contemplates that each sessions division (district) shall have one of the Judicial
Magistrates of First Class as the Chief Judicial Magistrate of the division. 4
Metropolitan Magistrates: The Courts of Metropolitan Magistrates, Chief and
Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrates, and Special Metropolitan Magistrates, are
created by Section 16, 17 and 18 of Cr.P.C. respectively. High Courts appoint the
presiding officers of such Courts. The jurisdiction of every metropolitan Magistrate is
extended throughout the metropolitan area. Special Magistrates are appointed by the
High Court on the request of the Central or State Government, for such term, not
exceeding one year at a time.
Executive Magistrates: The State Government may appoint as many persons as it
thinks fit to be Executive Magistrates, in every District and in every metropolitan area.
The local limits of the area within which the Executive Magistrates may exercise his
powers are defined by the District Magistrate. All the Executive Magistrates, other than
Additional District Magistrates are subordinate to the District Magistrate.
The High Court and other Courts are constituted under the provision of the Indian
Constitution

3
[Section 11 Cr.P.C., 1973].
4
(Sec. 12).
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Powers of various Criminal Courts

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1.4. Stake holders in Criminal Justice System and their duties: Police, Court,
Prosecution, Defense, Correctional Administration.

“Packer insists that each of the functionaries is expected to perform this function
as per allocated competence, neither more nor less. Therefore the functions of
defining crime, defining conditions of exemptions and awarding sentence after
conviction is primarily to be performed by the legislature and secondarily by the
courts, but in no case the Police or Prosecutors can play this definitional role. The
Code of Criminal Procedure provides elaborate rules for the allocation of
different functions for fair and just criminal justice administration.”

Police

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The very crux of the Criminal trial is laid down by the investigation done by the police. The
information of the offence is registered in the local police station under Section 154 of the Code of
Criminal Procedure 1973(CrPC). Thereafter the police starts the investigation under section 156
CrPC. Section 161CrPC empowers the investigation officer to examine any person supposed to be
acquainted with the facts and circumstances of the case and record the statement in writing.
However, section 162 of the Code provides that it is only the accused that can make use of such a
statement. So far as the prosecution is concerned, the statement can be used only to contradict the
maker of the statement in accordance with Section 145 of the Evidence Act. Any confession made
by the accused before the Police officer is not admissible and cannot be made use of during the
trial of the case. The statement of the accused recorded by the police can be used as provided under
Section 27 of the Evidence Act to the limited extent that led to the discovery of any fact. (Malimath
Comittee Report, 2003).The police can arrest a person for commission of cognizable offence under
section 41CrPc in accordance to the procedure given under section 46 CrPC. In the course of
investigation the Police officer may search any premise under sections 165 and 166 where there is
an expectation to anything (documents, materials) in connection with a cognizable offence. Any
such items may be seized by the police under section 102 CrPC. Police has the discretion to
discharge a person arrested on executing a bond under section 169 CrPc , in case the officer feels
that there is not enough incriminating materials against such persons. Finally, all such statements
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of the witnesses, and the evidence collected through the investigation alongwith the copy of the
First Information Report is made into a Police report and submitted under section 173 to the
Magistrate for taking cognizance there upon. Apart from this the Police also conducts the inquest
where an information of death is received under section 174 CrPC.

The police is a state subject and its organization and working are governed by rules and regulations
framed by the state governments. These rules and regulations are outlined in the Police Manuals of
the state police forces. Each State/Union Territory has its separate police force.
Courts

• Start the trial on the basis of the evidence submitted and the opening statements and the
two sides if there is sufficient evidence.
• Discharges the accused person if the evidence is not sufficient.
• The court is the finder of facts that are relevant from the evidence presented by the
prosecutor and the defence
• The judge decides on the basis of preponderance of probabilities
• The judge comes to a judgement by making a balance sheet of the aggravating and
mitigating factors
• In case it is a guilty verdict, the Court proceeds to pronounce the sentence at a separate
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 sentence hearing
The hierarchy and jurisdiction of criminal courts have already been discussed in the preceding
sections.
Prosecutor
Prior to the enactment of the Criminal Procedure Code of 1973, public prosecutors
were attached to the police department and they were responsible to the District Superintendent of
Police. However, after the new Code of Criminal Procedure came into force in 1973, the
prosecution wing has been totally detached from the police department. The prosecution wing in a
state is now headed by an officer designated as the Director of Prosecutions under section 25A of
CrPC. In Sessions Courts, the cases are prosecuted by Public Prosecutors. The District Magistrate
prepares a panel of suitable lawyers in consultation with the Sessions Judge to be appointed as
public prosecutors. The state government appoints public prosecutors out of the panel prepared by
the District Magistrate and the Sessions Judge. It is important to mention that public prosecutors
who prosecute cases in the Sessions Courts do not fall under the jurisdiction and control of the
Director of Prosecutions (Sharma, Madan Lal).

The state government also appoints public prosecutors in the High Court. The appointments are
made in consultation with the High Court as per section 24 of the Code. The most senior law officer
in a state is the Advocate General who is a constitutional authority. He is appointed by the governor
of a state under Article 165. He has the authority to address any court in the state. The Assistant
Public Prosecutors, Grade-I and Grade-II, are appointed by a state government under section 25
CrPC on the basis of a competitive examination conducted by the State Public Service .

Public prosecution is an important component of the Criminal Justice System. Prosecution of an

offender is the duty of the executive which is carried out through the institution of the Public
Prosecutor. The Supreme Court of India has defined the role and functions of a public prosecutor
in Shiv Nandan Paswan vs. State of Bihar & Others (AIR 1983 SC 1994) as under:
a) The Prosecution of an offender is the duty of the executive which is carried out through the
institution of the Public Prosecutor.
b) Withdrawal from prosecution is an executive function of the Public Prosecutor (section 321
CrPC).
c) Discretion to withdraw from prosecution is that of the Public Prosecutor and that of none else
and he cannot surrender this discretion to anyone.
d) The Government may suggest to the Public Prosecutor to withdraw a case, but it cannot compel

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him and ultimately the discretion and judgement of the Public Prosecutor would prevail.
e) The Public Prosecutor may withdraw from prosecution not only on the ground of paucity of
evidence but also on other relevant grounds in order to further the broad ends of public justice,
public order and peace.
f) The Public Prosecutor is an officer of the Court and is responsible to it.

The prosecutor has a very significant role. To start with there is a presumption of innocence in
favour of the accused. On the basis of the facts proved by the oral, documentary and forensic
evidence, the public prosecutor tries to substantiate the charges against the accused and tries to
drive home the guilt against him. If there is a statutory law regarding presumptions against the
accused, the public prosecutor draws the court’s attention towards that and meshes it with other
evidence on record. Throughout the trial he has the burden of proof and the standard of such proof
is quite high in India, as it has to be beyond a reasonable ground. He has to prove the circumstances,
and then he has to draw the inferences and convince the court that the arraigned accused alone is
guilty of the offences that he has been charged with.

Correctional (Prison) system

The Court determines the guilt of the accused and pronounces the appropriate sentence. In case the
court comes to the conclusion owing to the facts and circumstances of the case as well as the convict
that it is better for the rehabilitative prospect of the person to release him on probation under the
Probation of offenders Act 1958 read with section 360 of CrPC, then the court may release such
convict under probation. However, in case a sentence of imprisonment is pronounced then the final
wing of the Criminal Justice System is activated, that is the correctional wing through the prisons
system. The sentence of imprisonment in India is not punitive rather it is for using the period of
incarceration for the reformation and rehabilitation of the prisoner. This is achieved through
therapeutic treatment of education, labour, vocational training and yoga and meditation, so that the
prisoner is reformed internally not to choose the path of crime once he goes out of the prison. Prison
and its administration is a State Subject as it is covered by item 4 under List II in Schedule VII of
the Constitution of India. Prison Establishments in different States/UTs comprise several tiers of
jails. The most common and standard jail institutions which are in existence in the States/UTs are
better known as central jails, district jails and sub jails. The other types of jail establishments are
women jails, borstal schools, open jails and special jails (Crime in India, 2014).

Prison and its administration is a State Subject as it is covered by item 4 under List II in

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Schedule VII of the Constitution of India. Prison Establishments in different States/UTs
comprise several tiers of jails. The most common and standard jail institutions which are in
existence in the States/UTs are better known as central jails, district jails and sub jails. The
other types of jail establishments are women jails, borstal schools, open jails and special jails
EXERCISE 1. Which of the following is true of Section 31 Cr. P.C.?
A. it relates to the quantum of the punishment
that the Court has jurisdiction to pass where
the accused is convicted of two or more
offences at one trial
B. it is rule of the procedural law
C. either (A) or (B)
D. both (A) and (B)
Answer - D
2. Define and distinguish between the followings:
i. Bailable and Non-bailable offences;
ii. Cognizable and Non-cognizable offences
iii. Summons Case and Warrant Case
iv. Charge and Offences;
v. Inquiry and Trial
vi. Inquiry and Investigation
vii. Complaint and Information
viii. Complaint and First Information Report

3. Describe the Constitution and sub-ordination of

Criminal Courts. What are the provisions about it in
CRPC?
4. What provisions have been laid by the Cr.P.C.
(Amendment) Act 2005 regarding the Directorate of
Prosecution? Discuss.
5. Describe the Powers of Criminal Courts regarding the
sentences which they may pass under Cr. P. C.

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6. What are the provisions in the Code for passing a
sentence of imprisonment in default of fine?
7. Explain the law under the Criminal Procedure Code,
1973 relating to sentence in case of conviction of
several offences at a trial.
8. Shireen was charged with Offense A(6 years
imprisonment) and Offense B (7 years imprisonment).
Which Criminal Court is eligible to try the Shireen ?
Elaborate the mode of Sentencing that can be
provided to Shireen will undergo if convicted?

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