Tuesday 17 November 2020

 Criminal Justice System in India is primarily a police law. 

Cr.P.C empowers the police to register and investigate criminal cases. A weak alternative is also available for the criminal courts to entertain criminal complaints where police declines to register FIR or fails to dispense proper investigation. Such alternative isn't efficacious in practice. 

Police investigations happen to be  a much  close-door affair. It is not bona fidely accessible . Even courts don't have any intervention powers while investigations are afoot. This gives the investigating agency a long rope to do whatever, justice or injustice. Investigation proceedings are recorded in case diaries in which every detail is embodied. Even testimony of witnesses who wouldn't know whether their version really is what they averred. Only after the investigations are over, the case diaries become accessible legally, from the case record where final form is submitted, whether by way of closure report or by sending up accused person(s) for trial.

Most prosecution cases often fail due to two major reasons. Either the investigation records intentionally carry laches or at trial witnesses are either gained over or cowered into retracting. 

Problem is not easy to be  covered as precisely as a post like this may afford. It may fill volumes, if detailed. 

Suffice it to say, the criminal justice system today is a heaven for criminals while it is of little aid for the rest of us.