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High Court spells out rules for police to follow while dealing with 174 Criminal Procedure
On finding that in cases registered under Section 174 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (Police to enquire and report on suicide) the final report does not reach the concerned Magistrate Court resulting in the de facto complainant in all such cases not even being aware about the fate of the case, the Madras High Court has come out with a slew of procedures for the police to follow.
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Chennai
Justice N Anand Venkatesh on obtaining views from the legal fraternity to set right this erroneous practice, said the police on information about suspicious death shall register a FIR under Section 174 of CrPC and proceed to the scene of occurrence and prepare an inquest report describing the wounds, fractures, bruises and other marks of injuries found on the dead body.
Thereafter, the police officer shall also prepare a rough sketch of the place of occurrence in the presence of two or more respectable inhabitants of the neighbourhood, the judge said and noted that the proceedings are merely to ascertain whether a person has died under unnatural circumstances or an unnatural death and what is the cause of death.
Also, pointing out that the inquest report need not contain details about how the deceased was assaulted or who assaulted him or under what circumstances he was assaulted as they fall within police investigation, the judge held that the Police shall submit the same to the Executive Magistrate (EM) to enable him to hold an independent inquest.
The EM on completion of the inquest shall submit a report to the Police, which will form part of the investigation, Justice Anand Venkatesh said and held that the freedom of the Police to proceed with the investigation will be left untouched.
Insisting that on conclusion of the investigation the police shall file a final report only before the jurisdictional Magistrate and not before the EM, the judge held that in case the Police proceeds to file a closure report, the victim shall be entitled to be served with a R.C.S notice to enable him to file a protest petition before the concerned Magistrate.
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