Rights of an Accused

Author(s): A. G. Noorani
Source: Economic and Political Weekly , Jun. 18, 1983, Vol. 18, No. 25 (Jun. 18, 1983),
pp. 1090-1091
Published by: Economic and Political Weekly

Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/4372224

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amount lent by Reserve Bank at Rs 147
crore was less than what hid been
provided last year. The amount of
brorowing by the government sector
luring 1982-83 rose by Rs 1,684 crore;
this formed less than half of the expan-
sion of Rs 3,465 crore in 1981-82 and
was the lowest amount borrowed dur-
ing the past four busy seasons. Signi-
ficantly, increase in credit from the RBI
to the government -was less than 10per
cent of the expansion in 1981-82.
Credit extended by commercial and co-
opernative banks showed a sizeable in-
crease during the season. Net foreign
exchange assets of the banking sector,
the accretion to which amounted to
Rs 126 crore, imparted an expansionary
impulse in contrast to a contractionary
influence to the tune of Rs 844 crore
in 1981-82. This suggested that the
external sector is re-emerging as an
expansionary influence on money stock.
The data on the (perations of com-
inercial banks during the 1982-83 busy
season indicate faster growth in de-
posits, acceleration in bank credit
expansion, step-up in investnent in
rovernment and other securiti:es, steep
decline in balances kept with the RBI
by banks and rise in banks' indebted-
itess to the RBI. Aggregate deposits
mobilised by banks in the 1982-83 sea-
son increased by Rs 3,803 crore. This
growth was sizeablv larger than in
1981-82 (Rs 2,255 crore) and in
Rs 127 crore. Increased investment in
government securities going hand-in-
hand with a fall in the deposit balances
of banks with the RBI points to uneven-
CIVIl LIBERTIES
Rights of an Accused
A G Nooai
IT has been well said that Indian con-
stitutional lawyers are indifferent to
criminal law and criminal lawyers are
indifferent to constitutional law even
where it bears on their own field. The
Constitution contains some explicit
guarantees for one accused of a crimi-
nal offence in a court of law. Article
20 embodies the internationally recog-
nised guarantees against retrospective
penal legislation, double jeopardy, and
self-incrimnination. Article 22(1) and
(2) provide a certain protection against
arbitrary arrest and detention - the
rights to be informed of the grounds
of arrest "as soon as may be", to legal
assistance, and to be produced before
a magistrate within 24 hours of the
arrest.
However, an entirely new and wide
vista was opened by the Supreme
Court in Maneka Gandhi's case. Arti-
cle 21 says that "no person shall be
ness of the liquidity positions of dif-
ferent banks to a few banks being
under strain to meet the demands on
thewn for bank credit.
scriptions operate "from the lowest to
the highest court" where deprivation
of life or personal liberty is in sub-
stantial peril.
This case was decided on August
17, 1978. The Supreme Court has
since moved further. In the Bihar un-
dertrials' cases, known in law reports
as the Hussainara Khatoon's Cases, it
ruled that imprisonment without trial
for long periods is violative of Article
21 and a reasonably expeditious trial
is an essential part of the right to life
and liberty. The Court ordered the in-
vestigation to be completed in a
time-bound programme. It also affirm-
ed a right to give directions for posi-
tive action such as setting up of
courts, etc.
Then came the Bhagalpur blindings
cases (the Khatri cases). The Court
ruled that the right to free legal ser-
vices is an essential ingredient of a

1980-81 (Rs 3,618 crore). The increase deprived of his ,life or personal liberty reasonable, fair and just procedur'q
except according to procedure estab- and the right accrues from the stage
was more pronounced in the case of
timne deposits. There was greater lished by law". The Supreme Court of production before the magistrate
ruled that this did not give the legis regardless of request by the accused,
buoyancy in credit to the commercial
sector during the 1982-83 season. lature power to make any law or pre- if the offence is one which might entail
Credit for purposes other than food scribe any procedure. Th law must be a sentence of imprisonment and the

procurement expanded markedly by one which is not violative of any other circumstances of the case or the inte-
RIs 3,530 crore, perceptibly larger than fundamental right and the procedur,e rests of justice require legal represen-

the increase of Rs 1,395 crore and must be one which is fair, reasonable tation. Why the Court exempted eco-

Rs 3,247 crore, respectively, in 1981-82 and just. Thus the procedure in a cri- nomic offences from the purview of

and 1980-81 busv seasons. The smart minal trial must conform to these cri- this requirement is hard to under-
pick-up in credit in the recent period teria. Tle possibilities of evolution in stand. What if a political opponent of
is a signal that the RBI may have to future are enormous. the regime is hauled up on precisely
review its policy designed to put pres- Soon thereafter the Supreme Court such a false charge?

sure on the liquidity- position of bals has ruled in Madhav Hoskot's case It is all to the good that the Court
around the middle of July. The incre- that Article 21 [read with Article lhas repeatedly given directions for
mental non-ood credit-deposit ratio 19(1)(d)] requires that the Coult shaill speeding up of investigations and trials.
worked out to 92.8 per cent as against furnish a free transcript of the judg- It is estimated that sone 65 lakh
61.9 per cent in 1981-82 season and 90 ment when sentencing a person to a cases are now pending before mnagis-
per cent in 1980-81 season. At Rs 411 prison term and provide every facilitv trates and 3.5 lakh cases before Ses-
crore, incremental food credit was also to. him for filing an appeal. Further. sions Judges. It would be interesting
larger than Bs 189 crore recorded last "when the prisoner is disabled from to know how many of the accused
vear. Total investments in government engagng a lawyer, on reasonable are on trial. Incidentally, the Court
and other approved securities were grounds such as indigence or incom- has also ruled that grant of bail is
higher at Rs 1,903 crore compared to municado situation, the Court shall if the norm and its refusal an excep-
Its 1,415 crore in 1981-82 season. How- the circumstances of the case, the tion. Nor are sureties a must. A man
ever, incremental investment-deposit gravity of the sentence, and the ends can be released on his own bond too.
ratio stood lower at 50 per cent as of justice so require, assign competent So gross are the delays in our courts
against 629.7 per cent in the previous counsel for the prisoner's defence, pro- that it is interesting to note that
busy season. The banks drew down their vided the party does not object to as recently as on May 4, Justice
baulances maintained with the RBI to thethat lawyer". The state "shall pay to T Sathiadev of the Madras High Court
extent of Rs 938 crore, while their bor- assigned counsel such sum as the admitted a writ petition filed by P
rowings from the RBT were higher by couirt may equitably fix". These pre- Rangaraian Kumaramangalam, a prac-

1l0

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tising advocate and trade union leader,
seeking to call for records of all First
Information Reports pending with the
police which have crossed six months,
in the case of summons cases, and one
year, in the case of warrant cases, and
quash them and also direct the DG
of Police and his officials to stop fur-
ther investigation in those cases. The
petitioner alleged that over a lakh of
FIRs had been pending for more than
two years and nearly 10,000 cases had
been in the category 'qnder investiga-
tion' for four years in Tamil Nadu.
Under Section 167(5) of the Code of
Criminal Procedure, in summons cases
where investigation was not conclud-
ed within six months, a magistrate
should order stopping of further in-
vestigation unless the investigating
officer satisfied him that continuation
beyond that period was absolutely
necessary. Section 468 Cr PC said no
court should take cognisance of an
offence after the expiry of the period
prescribed (six months in cases where
offences were punishable with fine
onily, one year in cases of offences
punishable with imprisonment for a
term not exceeding one year and
three years if punishable with impri-
sonment for a termn above one year
but not exceeding three years. Under
Section 258 Cr PC in summons cases,
the magistrate might stop proceedings
aIt any stage without pronouncing
judgment.
The petitioner said many of the
FIRs did not name any accused. On
the pretext of a person being 'suspect-
ed accused', he was being harassed bv
the police at the instance of the com
plainants. These types of cases had be-
come a tool for influential persons to
harass their political opponents and
those from the weaker sections. De-
tention of persons on the plea that
FIRs were under investigation, for
periods exceeding six months was
illegal. In cases not covered by Section
167(5) Cr PC (non-summons cases), in-
definite pendency of FIRs at the in-
vestigation stage would violate ArticTe
21. The very concept of 'speedy trial',
a Fundamental Right, would be de
feated. A number of accused were re
irnanded to custody on the plea that
investigations were pending and often
bail was refused. The petitionet
sought interim orders directing re-
lease of all accused kept in custody
on the basis of FIRs pending more
than six months in the summons cases
and one Sear in warrant cases.
It is not difficult to appreciate thlatand religious identity. Of all: the ses- programmes in Jharkhand". Consequent
such cases raise vital issue-s of human siYos the most important -nd valuable
rights. By. now a recognised code of Nas the one on- linguistic and literaryofficial language in the Chotanagpur
s,uch rights has emerged thanks to the identity.
13.71.93.142 on Wed, 24 Jan 2024 07:20:27 +00:00
labours bf the International Commis-
garding charges: prompt production
sion of Jurists and other bodies. The before magistrate; *speedy trial; time
International Covenant on Civil and and facilities for defence; right to
Political Rights contains several pro- counsel of choice or one appointed by
visions in that regard (Articles 9 and the state, if indigent; public trial be-
14). Hence it is possible for an ob- fore impartial tribunal; specific char-
server on behalf of an international ge; bail; evidence in presence of accus-
organisation to judge by an objective ed with the right to cross-examine
test whether a trial in any part of the -adverse witnesses and to summon wit-
world has been fair or not. nesses in defence; and the right to
The following are the basic rights - appeal to a higher court.
certainty and precision in the defini- These rights are recognised in all
tion of crime; presumption of inno- civilised systems of jurisprudence.
cence; 'no retrospective penal laws; They all follow inexorably from Arti-
protection agaitist self-incrimination; cle 21, besides, of course, the explicit
ban on double jeopardy; right to rea- provisions of Article 20 and 22(1) and
sons of arrest and to information re- (2) in regar d to some of the rights.
Emerging Jharkhandi Identity
Report on a Conference
(By a Special Correspondent)
TIIE Department of -Tribal and Regio- LACK OF A COMMON LANGUAGE
nal Languages of Ranchi Uniiversity It wvas on the grounds of Jack of a
recently organised a conference on "The comiimon language that the States' Re-
Search for Unity in Diversity: The organisation Committee had rejected
Crises of Identity in Chotanagpur". The the Jhurkhand Party's demand for a
subject originally announced had 'Jhar- separate Jharkhand state. And it is on
khand' in place of 'Chotanagpur'. But this very ground that the CPI(M) and
the Union Home Ministry took objec- some other Marxists argue against the
tion to official (university) sponsorship Jharkhand concept. Of course, the
of such a conference. Consequently the existence of a cpmmor1 language is a
V'ice-Chancellor of Ranchi University powerful factor helping the growth of
informed the organisers that the sub- a group's identity. But the absence of
ject of the conference would have to a cotmmon language need not prove ani
he modified. The -subseqdent switch instuperable barrier as the example of
from 'Jharkhand' to 'Chotanagpur' did the Nagas (who even now have three
not, however, put an end to interfer- major languages - those of the Ao,
ence by the Union Ho-me Ministry and Sema and Angami tribes) shows. Nor,
it is quite likely that it was on the ais Lenin had pointed out, did tiny
persu=sion' of the Home Ministry thatSwitzerland suffer because it had three
virtually all the outside participants official l'aitguages. Despite speaking
dropped out at the last minute. French, Italian or German can anyone
The conference was unique in some deley that the Swiss have evolved as a
other respects too. Such was the en- nation in their own right and not merc-
thusiasm of the staff and students of lyv as a multi-national state?O
the Department of Tribal and Regio- Cotning back to the conference, the
nal Languages that they all contribu- capers on the language question miiade
ted money towards meeting the expen- at ntumber of important points. Francis
ses of the conference. Again, all those Ekka, Deptuty Director of the Central
who read papers and otherwise parti- Institute of Iindian Languages, Mysore,
cipated did so with a passion that the pointed out that the language policy in
academic world in India seems to hbve the Chotanagpur region discriminated
largely lost. This correspondent has at- against the tribal and regiolnal langua-
tended many academic seminars and ges. There was virtually no education
conferences, many of them dealing available in the mother-tongue, "...con-
\Vith matters of importance but no-stitutional provisions for safeguarding
\\ here has he come across such passionthe interests' of linguistic minority
anjd vigour in an academic conference. groups being recommendatory and not
The conference took up in different mandatory, one notices general lack of
sessions the questions, of socio-econo- enthutsiastn on the part of the govern-
llic, political, linguistic and cultural ment in their implementation of such
on the important role of Hindi as the
region (i e, in the part of Jharkhanci
1091
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