~By Paras Khetan The right to counsel of an accused has been constitutionally guaranteed under Article 22 of the Constitution of India. This right is available to the accused during the trial. However, the question arises whether the same is available to the accused at the time of police interrogation. There is ambiguity with regards to the … Continue reading Right to Counsel During Police Interrogation: An Analysis
-Aarushi Jain Recently, the apex court in Tofan singh v. State of Tamil Nadu held that the horizons of Section 25 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 (hereinafter 'IEA') extend to the statements recorded under Section 67 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (hereinafter 'NDPS Act'). The definition of 'police officer' under … Continue reading Judicial Quandary on ‘Police Officers’ Under Section 25 IEA and Special Statutes
- Prakhar Bajpai Arnesh Kumar serves to be the landmark judgement in the judicial history of India. The Supreme Court in this judgment made it clear that police must follow the “investigate first and then arrest” doctrine in the cases that are registered under section 498-A. The offence registered under Section 498-A of Indian Penal … Continue reading 8 years since “Arnesh Kumar Guidelines” what has changed ?
-By Tanmay Gupta and Yashasvi Raj Introduction As per Section 167 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (“Code”), an accused can be remanded for a maximum period of fifteen days at a time, up to ninety days. Conventionally, since the first day is included in the 24-hour production before the Magistrate, in practice, the maximum … Continue reading Need for Application of Judicial Mind in Granting Remand: Discerning the Nexus between Remand Periods and Media Pressure
-By Saisha Singh Earlier this year the Delhi High Court, in the process of hearing a case about registering FIRs against BJP Leaders, who have delivered alleged hate speeches, which are being said as being instrumental in inciting violence in NCR, was seen reminding the police to follow guidelines as established by the case of … Continue reading Preliminary Inquiry Before FIR: A Panacea for Malicious Prosecution?
-By Abhinav Sekhri This past week, a Three Justices' Bench had rendered its decision in the Tofan Singh reference [Crl. Appeal No. 152 of 2013, decided on 29.10.2020]. To recap, the reference had two questions placed before the Three Justices' Bench: Whether an officer of the central / state government investigating a case under the … Continue reading The Three Justices’ Bench decision in Tofan Singh
-By Gunjan Shrivastav https://reischlawfirm.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/When-Can-the-Entrapment-Defense-Be-Used-in-a-Criminal-Case.jpg In this blog, it is argued that any evidence obtained by the police by way of a trap should not be admissible in a court of law. In the absence of any specific provision that restricts the admissibility of evidence procured by way of trap, the court should adopt an approach … Continue reading Need for exclusion of evidence obtained through entrapment in India
By Gahna Rajani and Himanshu Bhargava Introduction J Jayaraj and Bennix Immanuel were subjected to brutal torture in police custody and later succumbed to death. This was not the first incident. The prisoners in India have been subjected to torture and violence for a long time. The apex court has issued several guidelines in the … Continue reading Police in India: Protectors against Injustice or Perpetrators of Injustice?
By Mayank Udhwani and Ragini Agarwal An investigation into whether the highly acclaimed crime thriller had an element of truth on the basis of real cases from Indian Courts. [SPOILER ALERT] When Pataal Lok released on Amazon Prime, it received raging reviews for its fast-paced, engrossing narrative and stellar acting performances. The crime-thriller also irked … Continue reading Paatal Lok: Fact or Fiction?
By Anurag Mohan Bhatnagar and Manvendra Shekhawat Introduction We live in an era in which, almost every crime has an electronic component involved, and be it a computer or mobile phones or even a small SD Card. Mobile phones, laptops, computers can be used for carrying out crime and can further be helpful for investigating … Continue reading The Nuances of Search and Seizure of Electronic Evidence: What Are the Components Involved?
By Abhinav Sekhri [This post first appeared on the author's blog, 'The Proof of Guilt'.] I've put out a short primer/paper (made with friends) explaining the basics about mobile phones and criminal investigations. This is meant to help convey the legal issues that arise in the context of the following: (i) seizure of a phone by … Continue reading Mobile Phones and Criminal Investigations
By Bhoomika Agarwal Policemen so cherish their status as keepers of the peace and protectors of the public that they have occasionally been known to beat to death those citizens or groups who question that status. - David Mamet The events that took place in the last few months have raised a very essential question … Continue reading Law Against Police Brutality
By Keshab Roy Choudhury Introduction The concept of justice is an ever-elusive one. What exactly does one mean when they say they want justice? In the Indian context, the concept of ‘instant justice’ has entered the discourse again post the rape and murder of a 26-year-old doctor in Hyderabad last year. This ‘instant justice’, in … Continue reading Deconstructing Section 46(3) of the CrPC: A Tacit Approval for Encounters
By Amrashaa Singh The recent killing of the four accused in the Hyderabad veterinary doctor’s rape case created a huge hue and cry across the nation. While some people praised the incident, others pointed out the human rights violations caused by the incident. Many famous personalities, praised it, including Jaya Bachchan, a Rajya Sabha M.P., … Continue reading Extra-Judicial killings: A solution for preventing crime in Adityanath’s UP?
By Nishtha Gupta “The safety of the people is the supreme law.” -Markus Tullius, Roman statesman and lawyer The Indian state has recently faced the world’s largest lockdown wherein 1.6 billion people have been subjected to an unprecedented lockdown. This has obviously led to a certain protest in terms of people not following the lockdown … Continue reading COVID-19 – III: Is Use of Lathi by Police During Lockdown Justified?
By Yashwanth J With the onset of nationwide lockdown following the COVID-19 pandemic caused by the coronavirus, various photos and videos have surfaced on the internet and the TV news channels portraying the highhandedness by the police officials against the flouters of the impugned curfew. The Government’s Guidelines on the measures to be taken by … Continue reading COVID-19 – II: Lockdown and the Wave of Police Brutality
By Abhiraj Das and Nihal Deo On the 24th of February, when the international community was keenly looking forward to the U.S. President’s visit to India, a severe riot broke out in Delhi. More than 50 people are reported to have lost their lives with hundreds being injured, shops thrashed and several homes set ablaze. … Continue reading Delhi Riots: Duties of the State Organs
By Abhinav Sekhri The many public demonstrations across the territory of Delhi and also other parts of the country that began last December brought the police powers of regulating such demonstrations into sharp focus. The statutory powers of the police were easily traceable — the Delhi Police Act of 1978, modelled on the old Police Act of … Continue reading Delhi Police Circulars & Standing Orders for Regulating Protests
