Professional Documents
Culture Documents
First Information Report: By: Hifajatali Sayyed
First Information Report: By: Hifajatali Sayyed
• The police officer shall get the statement of the person recorded by
a Judicial Magistrate under clause (a) of sub-section (5A) of
section 164 as soon as possible.
First Information Report
• Sec 154 (3) states that if a Police officer refuses to record the
information than the aggrieved person 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.
First Information Report
• Object of FIR:
1) From the point of view of complainant the object of FIR is to set the
criminal law in motion.
2) From the point of view of investigating authority, the object is to
obtain information about the alleged criminal activity.
3) An object is also to record the facts and circumstances before there is
time for the informant to be forgotten.
4) From the point of view of the accused the object is to safeguard the
accused against subsequent additions and variations.
5) From the Court’s point of view the object is to make known to the
court where the case is going to be tried.
First Information Report
Who can Lodge FIR:
• In this case the victim was forced to leave the matrimonial house in
Patiala. So an FIR was registered in Patiala based on allegations of
demanding dowry. Subsequently another FIR was registered u/s
498-A of IPC in Delhi where the victim was living with her parents.
Here the accused filed a petition u/s 482 of CrPC for quashing the
subsequent FIR on the ground that no part of the cause of action for
investigation or trial of an offence arose within Delhi. Here the High
Court quashed the F.I.R. on the ground that Investigating Officer at
Delhi was not having territorial jurisdiction. This order of the High
Court was challenged in the Supreme Court.
Zero FIR
Satvinder Kaur vs State Cont…
• In this case FIR was lodged in Delhi, despite the fact that all incidents
occurred in Mumbai. Writ Petition was filed in Court regarding the
mala fide intentions of police succumbing under the pressure of opposite
party. Supreme Court quashed the FIR filed at Delhi and ordered to file a
fresh FIR in Mumbai. In this case the police misused the power of
filing a Zero FIR at the behest of the opposite party.
• Here the Court stated that it is clear that the law is that police can register
an FIR of commission of a cognizable crime but after registration of FIR, if
on scrutiny or investigation, it is found that crime was not committed
within the jurisdiction of that Police Station but was committed within the
jurisdiction of some other Police Station, the FIR should be transferred to
that Police Station.
Zero FIR
Bimla Rawal vs State Cont…..
d) Corruption cases
First Information Report
Lalita Kumari vs Govt.Of U.P Cont….
• In this case the Court stated that a Police man passes through three
stages in conspiracy case; hears something of interest affecting the
public security and which puts him on the alert makes discreet
enquiries, subsequently he sets up information and in the second
stage of enquiry or look out he finally gathers sufficient information
enabling him to hit upon something definite and that is the state
when first information is recorded and then investigation starts. Hence a
preliminary enquiry made by the C.I.D. Police into relative information
floating about as to the existence of the conspiracy, the names and other
details of the conspirators not being known at the time is not investigation
carried out u/s 156 Cr.P.C
First Information Report
• Natural calamities.
• Distance of place of occurrence.
• Shortage of staff.
• Unavoidable departmental formalities (including delay due to
opinion of experts)
Delay in First Information Report
Gurbachan Singh vs. Satpal Singh and others (AIR 1990 SC 209)
• In this case the maternal uncle of the husband of the deceased informed the
father of the deceased of the fact of committing suicide by the deceased on
June 25, 1983 at about 5.30 P.M. The father of the deceased immediately
rushed to the hospital with members of his family where his daughter was
brought. He stayed there the whole night with his wife and other members of
the family near the dead body of his deceased daughter and on the next day till
the dead body was handed over to him after completion of post mortem
in the afternoon. The Asstt. Inspector of Police reached the hospital on the
next day i.e. on June 26, 1983 and got the statement of father of the deceased
recorded there. This statement was treated as FIR. In the circumstances, the
court held that it cannot be said that there has been any delay in
reporting the incident to the police station.
Delay in First Information Report
State of Rajasthan vs. Narayan (AIR 1992 SC 2004)
• In this case, there was delay of two days in reporting the
incident to the police in a case under Section 376 of IPC. It was
held by the Supreme Court that the victims of rape ordinarily
consult relatives and are hesitant to approach police
since it involves the question of morality and chastity of
women. The woman and her relatives have to struggle with
several situations before deciding to approach police, more so
when the culprit happens to be relative. In such case, the
delay is understandable and hence merely on that ground the
prosecution version cannot be doubted.
Delay in First Information Report
Sec 155 (3) of CrPC states that any police officer receiving such
order may exercise the same powers in respect of the
investigation (except the power to arrest without warrant) as an
officer in charge of a police station may exercise in a cognizable case.
Sec 155 (4) of CrPC states that where a case relates to two or more
offences of which at least one is cognizable, the case shall be
deemed to be a cognizable case, notwithstanding that the other
offences are non-cognizable.
Example, a case alleging commission of offences under Sections 494 and
498-A, IPC could be investigated by the police, though offence under
Section 494 is non-cognizable.
Information in Non-Cognizable Cases
S. Masthan Saheb v. P.S.R. Anjaneyulu (2003 CriLJ 248
Andhra)
• In this case the Court observed that as a necessary corollary, it must be
concluded that any effort on the part of police ‘to look into’ any
complaint by a person which does not contain allegations of
commission of cognizable offences would violate the provision
contained in Section 155 (2) of CrPC. There is no presumption
in law that every rift in human relations would lead to a civil dispute
and a civil dispute would likely to result in offences, against
human body. Any such effort on the part of police to look into the
complaints regarding civil disputes is not even the part of the code
of conduct of the police
Information regarding Unnatural Death
If a person dies naturally, then there lies no suspicion so as to the death
of the person. But in case of unnatural death, the death is caused due to
circumstances which needs to be explained and examined. There lies a
obligation on the state to secure the health and life of every citizen
of the country. If any crime is committed, the crime is against the state.
If a person dies due to unnatural circumstances, the state is burdened to
identify the cause of death and if there lies a suspicion as to the cause of
death, the state must take appropriate steps to punish the guilty.
In order to provide for the procedure in case a person dies unnaturally,
Section 174 was created that lays down the procedure that the police
officer and the Magistrate must follow in case of unnatural
deaths.
Information regarding Unnatural Death
Sec 174 (1) of CrPC provides that when the officer in charge of a
police station receives information that a person has committed
suicide, or has been killed by another or by an animal or by
machinery or by an accident, or has died under
circumstances raising a reasonable suspicion that some
other person has committed an offence, he shall immediately give
intimation thereof to the nearest Executive Magistrate
empowered to hold inquests.
Information regarding Unnatural Death
For the purpose of the unnatural deaths, the executive
magistrate upon the intimation by the Station House Officer or
some other Police Officer specially empowered by the State
Government, shall prepare an inquest report which shall
contain all the details regarding the cause of death of a
person. Inquest report is prepared by District Magistrate,
Additional District Magistrate, or Sub-divisional Magistrate,
especially empowered in this behalf by the State Government when
the deaths are sudden and unexplained.
Information regarding Unnatural Death
For preparing the report, the magistrate shall be investigating the
cause of death. In the report, the magistrate must describe the
apparent cause of death where he shall describe the smallest of
details that he comes across upon investigation of the dead
body. Some of the details that the magistrate must describe are:
• Nature of surrounding where the dead body is found.