SHC orders impartial inquiry against Thatta police officials

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court (SHC) has directed the Hyderabad Range police chief to initiate an impartial inquiry with regard to the allegations levelled against Thatta police officials about depriving a resident of his valuables. The DIG was told to consider all aspects of the case and submit a report within a week.

The direction came on the application of Dr Fateh Ali, who challenged the order of Thatta’s additional district & sessions court, which had directed the Thatta SSP to conduct an impartial inquiry against Thatta police officials.

The applicant’s counsel said the complainant has reposed no confidence in the Thatta police because they are “in league with one another†, and requested that the court forward the matter to the Hyderabad DIG to conduct an impartial inquiry.

Replying to a query of the court, the counsel said that the remedy under Section 154 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) is more effective than filing a direct complaint with the court under Section 200 of the CrPC.

The counsel claimed that ample material and evidences are available that prima facie show the involvement of police officials who had taken away precious items from his client’s house on the pretext of conducting a raid for his arrest.

He said that the trial court had rightly issued the order for conducting an inquiry, but directing the Thatta SSP to conduct an inquiry is not right because the Thatta police might prejudice the applicant’s case.

A single SHC bench headed by Justice Adnanul Karim Memon said that the Supreme Court has held in recent judgments dilating upon Section 22-A of the CrPC that it is not the function of the justice of peace to punctiliously or assiduously scrutinise the case or to render any findings on merits.

However, the court added, he has to ensure whether from the facts narrated in the application any cognisable case is made out or not, and if yes, he can issue directions that the statement of the complainant be recorded under Section 154.

The bench said that such powers of the justice of peace are limited to aid and assist in the administration of the criminal justice system, and the justice of peace has no right to assume the role of an investigating agency or a prosecutor.

He has been conferred with a role of vigilance to redress the grievance of those complainants who have been refused by the police officials to register their reports, the court added.

The SHC said that if the justice of peace assumes and undertakes a full-fledged investigation and inquiry before the registration of an FIR, every person would have to first approach the justice of peace for scrutiny of his complaint, and only after their clearance would the FIR be registered, which is beyond the comprehension, prudence and intention of the legislature.

The court said that minute examination of a case and conducting a fact-finding exercise are not included in the functions of a justice of peace, but he is saddled with a sense of duty to redress the grievance of the complainant who is aggrieved by the refusal of a police officer to register his report.

The bench said that investigative activities serve a multitude of purposes, so it is also the duty of the officer incharge of the police stations to ensure that the investigating officer follows the provisions of law conscientiously, without any breach, conducting an impartial and honest investigation with the sole aim of bringing the truth to light, which is the foundational pathway for the prosecution’s case.

The court said that in case of declining the registration of an FIR or recording the statement, the aggrieved person has a right to approach under Section 22-A of the CrPC and file any such application, and the justice of peace is obligated to examine it and, after hearing the parties, pass an appropriate order.

The SHC said that keeping in view the anxiety of the complainant on the premise that the police are required to protect and not to abduct, the Hyderabad DIG would conduct an impartial inquiry into the matter and see all the aspects of the case after hearing the parties. The court directed the DIG to complete the exercise within a week.