One-Time Judicial Restraint Not License For Continuing Breach Of Fundamental Rights: Jaipur Court Orders Release Of Accused In SI Paper Leak Scam

Citing a blatant violation of Section 57 Cr. P.C., the court of Chief Metropolitan Magistrate at Jaipur has ordered the immediate release of the accused, including 11 trainee Sub-Inspectors, allegedly involved in the 2021 Sub Inspector/Platoon Commander Recruitment Paper Leak Scam.

The CMM Poona Ram Godara opined that the Special Operations Group (SOG) didn't give due consideration to the court's erstwhile direction for a special enquiry by DGP when a similar application under Sections 41-A and 57 of Cr. P.C were moved by some other accused persons who were arrested in March itself. At that time, since the investigation was at a nascent stage, the court did not hold the detention to be totally illegal, considering it the first bona fide act of SOG and considering the fact that those arrests were the first ones in the paper leak scam, the court emphasized in the order.

“…In the earlier application, this court did not dismiss the. Application. The view of the court was almost same but the ultimate conclusion was not drawn and a fact finding full fledged enquiry was ordered but it is not necessary for the same court to perpetuate the same course of action time and again…”, the court observed.

In the earlier order, the court, while ordering an enquiry, held that SOG must have produced the accused within the time prescribed by the law. However, in the current situation as well, SOG followed the same course of action while detaining 11 out of 12 accused continuously for over 30 hours commencing from 2^nd April. The 12^th accused was in custody since 31^st March, contravening Section 57 CrP.C. In these circumstances, the current application was not a fit one to order yet another enquiry instead of taking stricter measures, the court noted.

“…No court is bound to follow its own earlier opinion. The court may draw different opinion or conclusion on different levels of the same case or in the different cases… One time judicial restraint or hesitation is not a stamp or licence for SOG to continue the breach of fundamental rights. This order may look like philosophical but it's philosophical because the fundamental rights and basic values and principles of laws are based on different philosophies…”, the court underscored.

While ordering the release of accused persons conditionally on special bail bonds, the court went on to note that the investigating officer and the monitoring team were responsible for this illegal detention. Hence, the court instructed that a letter be sent separately to the Home Secretary and DGP to take appropriate action against responsible officials and to prevent breach of fundamental rights in the future.

“…If this issue is pondered over from a prudent person's perspective if 30 hours long and continuous detention is not illegal detention, what else would amount to illegal detention? Clearly the arrest of these accused was made in the evening of 2nd April 2024, and from that point of time, SOG had failed to bring these accused persons before the court within 24 hours and so their detention in custody amounts to illegal detention”, the court concluded.

The trainees taken into custody by SOG from Rajasthan Police Academy were confined immediately without arresting them. The court opined that the SOG is not entitled to break the laws by indefinitely keeping the accused/suspects in custody. Instead of continuous confinement, SOG could have released the accused in the evening and continued interrogation on another day, the court pointed out.

“..Such detention has always possibility of inhumane custodial torture and to prevent and minimize such torture, such safeguards in form of fundamental rights have been guaranteed under constitution…”, added the magistrate.

A conjoint violation of Section 57 Cr.P.C and Articles 14, 21, and 22 has occurred in the current case, as per the court's inferences pertaining to a custodial investigation carried out by SOG in 'old style and advice.' In the absence of a special order from the concerned magistrate under section 167 Cr.P.C, the investigating team should not have kept the suspects who were arrested without a warrant in custody beyond 24 hours.

However, on another front, the court reached the conclusion that the investigating officer has rightly prepared the checklists as mandated in Arnesh Kumar and Satendra Kumar Antil, and detailed reasons have been mentioned for making the arrest of the accused.

Background

In 2021, the Rajasthan Public Service Commission issued an advertisement for recruiting Sub-Inspectors/Platoon Commanders in the Rajasthan Police. For the exams scheduled on 14^th and 15^th September 2021, papers were allegedly stolen from the strongroom of the school where the exam was being conducted, allegedly in connivance with the school owner. The papers procured were then distributed to the accused in various parts of Rajasthan, according to the prosecution. According to SOG, the kingpin behind the paper leak has already been arrested. The current F.I.R. against the 12 accused persons was registered under Sections 419, 420, and 120B of IPC along with Sections 4,5 and 6 of the Rajasthan Public Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 1992 and 66D of IT Act.

Case Title: Manju & Ors. v. The State

FIR No. 10/2024 PS SOG, Rajasthan, Jaipur

Click Here To Read/Download Order