Orissa High Court
Bipin Bihari Das vs State Of Orissa And Ors. on 3 July, 1992
Equivalent citations: 1993CRILJ245
Author: D.P. Mohapatra
Bench: D.P. Mohapatra
ORDER D.P. Mohapatra, J.
1. The petitioner Bipin Bihari Das has filed this application under Section 482, Criminal Procedure Code against the State of Orissa, the Sub-divisional Judicial Magistrate, Koraput and the Officer-in-charge, Town Police Station, Koraput with the prayer to quash the proceeding in C.R. Case No. 590 of 1989 pending before the S.D. J.M., Koraput. The sole ground on which quashing of the proceeding is sought is delay on the part of the police in completing the investigation.
2. The relevant facts stated in the application may be stated thus:
The petitioner is an advocate practising at Koraput. He is the Secretary of a voluntary registered organisation known as "Naya Sahayak Samiti" through which legal aid and advice has been rendered to litigants belonging to weaker section of society; certain developmental activities have been undertaken to improve the lot of people belonging to scheduled caste and scheduled tribe communities, a tribal model school is managed by the Samiti. By letter dated 3-10-89 (An-nexure4) of the District Small Savings Officer, Koraput to the Officer-in-charge, Koraput Town Police Station a complaint was made that huge amount of money had been swindled by certain persons noted in the statement enclosed to the letter from the tribal people while withdrawing amounts from post office. It was further stated in the said letter that the Government had granted compensation to the tribal people whose lands and houses were submerged in the reservoir of upper kolab project; the amounts sanctioned were deposited in savings bank accounts in Koraput Head Post Office in the names of beneficiaries and the pass books were handed over to them; when the beneficiaries tried to withdraw the amounts from their accounts the persons named in the letter in collusion with employees of the postal department and others illegally collected huge amounts and thereby the illiterate tribals (beneficiaries) were cheated and exploited. The names of the beneficiaries who were cheated were also noted in the statement enclosed to the letter along with dates of alleged incident.
It is the case of the petitioner that though more than two years have elapsed since receipt of the letter by the police and investigation has been made no final form has yet been submitted under Section 173, Criminal Procedure Code. It is the further case of the petitioner that similar allegations had been made earlier by the District Small Savings Officer, Koraput vide his letter dated 6-9-86 to the Officer-in-charge, Sadar Police Station, Koraput (Annexure 1), by the Collector, Koraput vide his letter dated 8-9-86 to the Superintendent of Police, Koraput (Annexure 2) and the District Small Savings Officer, Koraput vide his letter dated 1-10-86 to the Officer-in-charge, Town Police Station, Koraput (Annexure 3). On enquiry by the police the allegations were found to be false. The petitioner contends that due to the allegations made by the officials of the District administration and other public officers, Naya Sahayak Samiti is being deprived of financial assistance from the Government which is evident from the letter dated 17-6-86 of the Addl. District Magistrate, Koraput to the Commissioner-cum-Secretary, Harijan and Tribal Welfare Department, Bhubaneswar (Annexure 5) and the letter dated 29-2-88 of the Commissioner-cum-Secretary to Government in Harijan and Tribal Welfare Department to the Collector, Koraput vide Annexure 6. On the above averments/ contentions the petitioner seeks to quash the F.I.R. the investigation and the criminal proceeding.
3. The sole contention raised by Shri Behera, learned counsel for the petitioner was that Section 173(1), Cr.P.C. mandates that every investigation under Chapter XII shall be completed without unnecessary delay and since the said statutory mandate has been violated by the investigating agency in this case the proceeding is liable to be quashed.
4. In view of the above submission of the learned counsel for the petitioner, the learned Addl. Standing Counsel appearing for the opposite parties parties was directed to take instructions from the opposite parties, particularly Investigating Officer. Thereafter an affidavit was filed by Shri Raghubir Singh, the Investigating Officer of the case in question (Town P. S. Case No. 142 of 1989 under Section 402/ 34,I.P.C.). Therein it is averred, inter alia, that basing on the F.I.R. dated 3-10-89 the case has been instituted against the petitioner and others under Section 420/34, I.P.C. The allegations against the accused persons are, inter alia, that they have cheated as many as 133 beneficiaries of eight submerged villages. Out of the said beneficiaries 80 beneficiaries have already been examined and the balance 53 beneficiaries are yet to be examined; since the beneficiaries have settled at different places in Koraput district steps are being taken to trace them out. Requisitions have been issued to the Land Acquisition Officer and to the Settlement Officer to cause production of certain relevant documents relating to the cases of the beneficiaries. The documents are yet to be received. It is also stated in the affidavit that there are 43 other cheating cases connected with the present case and therein attempt is being made to seize the relevant documents. Of the two mediators, viz. Prasad Sundhi and Sankarsan Palti, Prasad Sundhi has been examined and Sankarsan Pati is yet to be examined since he is not available at Koraput and is reported to be living in Dhenkanal district. Explaining the reason for delay it is stated by the deponent that due to frequent transfer of Investigating Officers the investigation could not be completed and it is expected to be completed within four to five months.
5. On the discussions in the foregoing paragraphs the question that arises for consideration is whether in the facts and circumstances of the case this Court in exercise of its inherent power under Section 482, Cr.P.G. should quash the F.I.R., the pending investigation and the criminal case solely on the ground of delay. This question was considered by the Apex Court in the case of State of Andhra Pradesh v. P. V. Pavithran, reported in AIR 1990 SC 1266: (1990 Cri LJ 1306) in which the Court ruled that no general and wide proposition of law can be formulated that whenever there is inordinate delay on the part of the investigating agency in completing the investigation, such delay ipso facto would provide ground for quashing the First Information Report or the proceedings arising therefrom. Elucidating the point the Court made the following observations (at page 1307):
"There is no denying the fact that a lethargic and lackadaisical manner of investigation over a prolonged period makes an accused in a criminal proceeding to live every moment under extreme emotional and mental stress and strain and to remain always under a fear psychosis. Therefore, it is imperative that if investigation of a criminal proceeding staggers on with tardy space due to the indolence or inefficiency of the investigating agency causing unreasonable and substantial delay resulting in grave prejudice or disadvantage to the accused, the Court as the protector of the right and personal liberty of the citzen will step in and resort to the drastic remedy of quashing further proceeding in such investigation.
While so, there are offences of grave magnitude such as diabolical crimes of conspiracy or clandestine crimes committed by members of the underworld with their tentacle spread over various parts of the country or even abroad. The very nature of such offences would necessarily involve considerable time for unearthing the crimes and bringing the culprits to book. Therefore it is not possible to formulate inflexible guidelines or rigid principles of uniform application for speedy investigation or to stipulate any arbitrary period of limitation within which investigation in a criminal case should be completed."
This view has been reiterated by the Apex Court in a recent decision in the case of State of Bihar v. Sh. P. P. Sharma, reported in 1991 (2) Crimes 113 : (1991 Cri LJ 1438). Therein the Court set aside the decision of the Patna High Court and deprecated the view taken by the High Court to quash the F.I.R. and chargesheet in exercise of inherent power under Section 482, Cr.P.C. or in exercise of any writ jurisdiction under Arts. 226 and 227 of the Constitution of India. Of course the main point that arose for consideration in that case was whether the High Court was right in quashing the F.I.R. and charge-sheet in the case on the ground that the prosecution against the respondents was initiated as a result of malice on the part of the administrator informant. In paragraphs 13, 14 and 24 the Court made the following observations:
"The Investigating Officer is the arm of the law and plays pivotal role in the dispensation of criminal justice and maintenance of law and order. The police investigation is therefore, the foundation stone on which the whole edifice of criminal trial rests an error in its chain of investigation may result in miscarriage of justice and the prosecution entails with acquittal. The duty of the investigating officer, therefore, is to ascertain facts, to extract truth from half truth or garbled version, connecting the chain of events. Investigation is a tardy and tedious process. Enough power, therefore, has been given to the police officer in the area of investigation process, granting him or her great latitude to exercise his discretionary power to make a successful investigation. It is by his action that law becomes an actual positive forces. Often crimes are committed in secracy with dexterity and at high places. The investigating officer may have to obtain information from sources disclosed or undisclosed and there is no set procedure to conduct investigation to connect every step in the chain of prosecution case by collecting the evidence except to the extent expressly prohibited by the Code or the Evidence Act or the Constitution. In view of the arduous task involved in the investigation he has been given free liberty to collect the necessary evidence in any manner he feels expedient, on the facts and in given circumstances. His/her primary focus in on the solution of the crime by intending investigation. It is his duty to ferret out the truth. Laborious hard work and attention to the details, ability to sort out through mountainous information, recognised behaviourial patterns and above all, to co-ordinate the efforts of different people associated with various elements of the crime and the case, are essential. Diverse methods are, therefore, involved in making a successful completion of the investigation.
From this perspective, the function of the judiciary in the course of investigation by the police should be complementary and full freedom should be accorded to the investigator to collect the evidence connecting the chain of events leading to the discovery of the truth, viz., the proof of the commission of the crime. Often individual liberty of a witness or an accused person are involved and inconvenience is inescapable and unavoidable. The-investigating officer would conduct indepth investigation to discover truth while keeping in view the individual liberty with due observance of law. At the same time he has a duty to enforce criminal law as an integral process. No criminal justice system deserves respect if its wheels are turned by ignorance. It is never his business to fabricate the evidence to connect the suspect with the commission of the crime. Trustworthiness of the police is the primary insurance. Reputation for investigative competence and individual honesty of the investigator are necessary to enthuse public confidence. Total support of the public also is necessary.
xx xx xx It is undoubted that no one should unnecessarily be harassed or face an ordeal of criminal trial unless sufficient materials are collected during the investigation disclosing the crime committed. The Investigating Officer is not to act on a pre-conceived idea of guilt of the accused. The Investigating Officer is expected to gather the entire material, so that the truth or falsehood of the accusation may be found by the Court at the trial. The Investigating Officer is expected to investigate justly and fairly, but the evidence collected at the investigation is not be all and end all. At the stage of trial the opportunity is wide open to the accused to cross examine the witnesses and if he deems necessary to adduce the defence evidence and to test the veracity of the evidence collected during the investigation."
6. Testing the present case in the light of the principles laid down by the Apex Court in the above noted decisions, it is my considered view that in the facts and circumstances of the present case it will not be apt and proper to quash the F.I.R./the investigation/the proceeding in exercise of inherent power under Section 482, Cr.P.C., instead a direction should be issued to the Investigating Officer to complete the investigation within a reasonable time and submit his report. I am of the view that three months' time can be said to be reasonable for the purpose.
7. As such, while declining to quash the investigation and the proceeding as prayed by the petitioner, I direct that the investigation should be completed by 30th September, 1992. This application is disposed of accordingly.