CHARGESHEET
- POLITY
News:
'Chargesheets are not
public documents': Breaking down the SC ruling
What's
in the news?
●
The Supreme Court held that chargesheets are not ‘public documents’
and enabling their free public access
violates the provisions of the Criminal Code of Procedure as it compromises the
rights of the accused, victim, and the investigation agencies.
●
Before dismissing the PIL seeking
directions to the police or investigating agencies like the ED or the CBI, a
two-judge bench of Justice MR Shah and Justice CT Ravikumar also cautioned
against the possibility of ‘misuse’.
What
is a chargesheet?
●
A chargesheet, as defined under Section 173 CrPC, is the final report prepared by a police officer
or investigative agencies after completing their investigation of a case.
●
A chargesheet must be filed against the
accused within a prescribed period of
60-90 days, otherwise the arrest is illegal and the accused is entitled to
bail.
●
A chargesheet is filed by the police or
law-enforcement/ investigative agency only after they have gathered sufficient evidence against the accused in respect of the
offenses mentioned in the FIR, otherwise, a ‘cancellation report’ or ‘untraced
report’ can be filed when due to lack of evidence.
Chargesheet
Vs FIR:
|
Chargesheet |
FIR |
|
1. The term
‘chargesheet’ has been expressly defined under Section 173 of the CrPC. |
1. ‘First
Information Report’ or FIR, has not been defined in either the Indian Penal
Code (IPC) or the CrPC. Instead, it finds a place under the police
regulations/ rules under Section 154 of CrPC, which deals with ‘Information
in Cognizable Cases’. |
|
2. The
chargesheet is the final report filed towards the end of an investigation. |
2. An FIR is
filed at the ‘first’ instance’ that the police is informed of a cognizable
offense or offence for which one can be arrested without a warrant; such as
rape, murder, kidnapping.
|
|
3. A chargesheet is complete with evidence
and is often used during the trial to prove the offenses the accused is
charged with.
|
3. An FIR does
not decide a person’s guilt. |
Abhinandan
Jha & Ors vs Dinesh Mishra Ruling:
●
The Supreme Court in 1967 ruled that after
filing an FIR, the investigation takes place. Only if the police have
sufficient evidence can the case be forwarded to the Magistrate, otherwise, the
accused is released from custody under Section 169 of the CrPC.