Alleged Harassment By Police During Enquiry/Investigation: Madras High Court Issues Guidelines

Hearing a plea filed seeking direction to direct Inspector of Police, District Crime Branch, Sivagangai not to harass the petitioner in any manner except by due process of law, the Madras High Court last week issued certain guidelines to be followed by police while taking up enquiry/investigation into a matter.

The Bench of Justice A. D. Jagadish Chandira issued the following guidelines:

• While summoning any person named in the complaint or any witness to the incident complained of, the police officer shall summon such person through a written notice specifying a particular date and time for appearing before them.
• The respondent police is directed to serve notice mentioning the CSR number, date of complaint and the name of the complainant/
• The police officer shall refrain from harassing persons called upon for enquiry/investigation.
• The guidelines stipulated for preliminary enquiry or registration of FIR by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Lalita Kumari Vs. Government of Uttar Pradesh and others [2014 (2) SCC (1)] shall be strictly adhered to.
• During the course of enquiry, if it is found that any cognizable offence is made out, the respondents are free to register the First Information Report and this order shall not be a shield for the petitioner against the action taken by the respondent in accordance with law

Filing a 482 CrPC plea, one A. Daniel had complained of harassment by the police based on a complaint and sought for this Court's intervention by way of a direction. It was the grievance of the petitioner that the respondent police has been harassing him under the guise of an enquiry/investigation.

Observing that the term 'harassment' by itself has a very wide meaning and hence, what could be harassment to the petitioner may not be the same to the police officer, the court further noted that an enquiry into a non-cognizable offence or a cognizable offence is the unfettered powers of the Investigation Officers so long as the power to investigate/enquire into these offences are legitimately exercised within the framework of Chapter XII of the Code of Criminal Procedure.

"...there is no power envisaging him to interfere with the actual investigation or the mode of investigation. It is in this background that numerous petitions complaining of harassment are being reported and filed before this Court seeking for directions to refrain the police officials from harassing the persons named in a complaint," added the Court.

Against this backdrop, the Court issue the aforesaid guidelines while noting that the Court would also not turn a blind eye to instances of harassment by the police under the guise of investigation is brought to its notice. 

Case title - A.Daniel v. The Superintendent of Police and another

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