oppn parties Supreme Court Says Courts Cannot Routinely Interfere With Criminal Investigations

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  • Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said India's trade imbalance with China was growing sharply and attributed the problem partly to restrictions on Indian goods and services entering the Chinese market. China subsequently said it was ready to work with India to address mutual economic and trade concerns; India's trade deficit with China reached $69 billion in the first half of FY2026–27, up 27% year-on-year
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  • The Supreme Court ruled that a person converting from Hinduism to Islam cannot automatically claim backward-class reservation benefits in the new religious community solely on the basis of their previous caste status. The judgment upheld the Madras High Court's decision striking down a 2024 Tamil Nadu government order that permitted such certification for specified communities
  • The Election Commission of India ordered a Special Summary Revision of electoral rolls in 14 states and three Union Territories, using January 1, 2027, as the qualifying date for voter eligibility. The draft rolls are scheduled for publication on November 12, claims and objections will be accepted until December 11, and the final rolls are due on January 4, 2027
Delhi HC refuses to ban CJP's Tiranga rally at Central Park in Connaught Place today /////// Police says will control and regulate it /////// NDMC closes the park for the public on Friday and Saturday
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Supreme Court Says Courts Cannot Routinely Interfere With Criminal Investigations

By Sunil Garodia
First publised on 2021-04-14 06:41:44

About the Author

Sunil Garodia Editor-in-Chief of indiacommentary.com. Current Affairs analyst and political commentator. Author of Cyber Scams in India, Digital Arrest, The Money Trap and The Human Hack

 The Supreme Court on Tuesday came down heavily on the practice of lower courts routinely staying police investigations or granting relief or protection to the accused. The court was of the opinion that courts should not do so in the initial stages of the police investigations. It should be done only in exceptional cases where it is clear that a prima facie case cannot be made out and the intention was to harass the accused. Even then, the court opined that the reasons for staying the probe should be spelt out to show application of mind by the lower court.

The court said that "an FIR is not an encyclopaedia to disclose all facts" related to the case and the police should be allowed to investigate the case to find out the truth. It also said that the police and the judiciary operate in their relevant spheres and must not tread over the other's domain. "The extraordinary and inherent powers of the court do not confer an arbitrary jurisdiction to act according to its whim or caprice", the court said, and added that courts should be cautious while interfering with criminal investigations. The court categorically said that "quashing of a complaint/FIR should be an exception rather than an ordinary rule".

It is good that the Supreme Court has taken cognizance of this dubious practice in lower courts. Many police investigations are scuttled as the accused manage to get a quashing or stay order from the courts. Since lower courts do this in a routine manner without spelling out the reasons, it becomes disruptive and the police are not allowed to proceed in the case. There is no doubt that many criminal cases are filed just to harass the accused and as the apex court has said, the lower courts can apply their minds and grant relief in such cases by recording the reasons. 

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