CRPC 3

• Constitution of Criminal Courts under the Code of

Criminal Procedure
• 6. Classes of Criminal Courts.
• Besides the High Courts and the Courts constituted
under any law, other than this Code, there shall be, in
every State, the following classes of Criminal Courts,
namely-
• (i) Courts of Session;
• (ii) Judicial Magistrate of the first class and, in any
Metropolitan area, Metropolitan Magistrate;
• (iii) Judicial Magistrate of the second class; and
• (iv) Executive Magistrate.
• 7.The entire territory of India consists of states and
Section 7 of the Code states that “the basic territorial
divisions of the State are the districts and the Sessions
Divisions”. Considering the special needs of big cities like
Bombay, Calcutta, Madras, etc. the Code has recognised
them as metropolitan areas and each such area shall be
considered as a separate sessions division and district.
• According to this territorial demarcation, the criminal
courts of India include the Supreme Court of India, High
Courts, Court of Session in every Session Division and
Courts of Judicial Magistrates in every district.
• 8. Metropolitan areas.
• (1) The State Government may, by notification, declare
that, as from such date as may be specified in the
notification, any area in the State comprising a city or
town whose population exceeds one million shall be a
metropolitan area for the purposes of this Code.
• (2) As from the commencement of this Code, each of the
Presidency-towns of Bombay, Calcutta and Madras and
the city of Ahmedabad shall be deemed to be declared
under sub-section (1) to be a metropolitan area.
• (3) The State Government may, by notification, extend,
reduce or alter the limits of a metropolitan area but the
reduction or alteration shall not be so made as to reduce
the population of such area to less than one million.
• 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 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 conferrable 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• Executive 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 of the 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.
• Sentences which can be passed by the various courts
• Sentences passed by the High Courts and Sessions Judges (Section 28):
• Any sentence which is authorised by law can be passed by the High Court.
• A Sessions or Additional Sessions Judge can pass any sentence authorised by law.
But, while passing death sentence prior confirmation from High Court is required.
• An Assistant Sessions Judge has the authority to pass any sentence of
imprisonment for more than 10 years other than a death sentence or life
imprisonment
• Sentences passed by the Magistrates (Section 29) –
• The Court of Chief Judicial Magistrate can pass any sentence of imprisonment for
more than seven years but not a death sentence or life imprisonment.
• The Judicial Magistrate of first class can pass a sentence of imprisonment for a
term, less than three years, or a fine less than ten thousand rupees or both.
• The Judicial Magistrate of second class may pass a sentence of imprisonment for
a term, less than one year, or a fine less than five thousand rupees.
• The Chief Metropolitan Magistrate has the same powers as that of a Chief Judicial
Magistrate and of MM, in addition to the powers of the Magistrate of first class.