SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
DHANANJAYA Y. CHANDRACHUD, M.R. SHAH, JJ.
MANJEET SINGH - APPELLANT
VERSUS
STATE OF HARYANA & ORS. - RESPONDENTS
CRIMINAL APPEAL NO.875 OF 2021
DECIDED ON : 24-08-2021

IMPORTANT POINTS
(1) Powers under Section 319 Cr.P.C. can be exercised at any stage before final conclusion of trial.
(2) On the basis of examination-in-chief of a witness if a case is made out, a person can be summoned to face trial under Section 319 Cr.P.C.
(3) At stage of exercising powers under Section 319 Cr.P.C., Court is not required to appreciate and/or enter on merits of allegations of case.
(4) Court is sole repository of justice and duty is cast upon it to uphold rule of law.

Headnote:

(A) Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 – Section 319 – Summoning of additional accused to face trial – While exercising powers under Section 319 Cr.P.C. and to summon persons not charge-sheeted, entire effort is not to allow real perpetrator of an offence to get away unpunished; for empowerment of courts to ensure that criminal administration of justice works properly ; law has been properly codified and modified by Legislature under Cr.P.C. indicating as to how courts should proceed to ultimately find out truth so that innocent does not get punished but at the same time, guilty are brought to book under law; to discharge duty of court to find out real truth and to ensure that guilty does not go unpunished ; where investigating agency for any reason does not array one of real culprits as an accused, court is not powerless in calling said accused to face trial ; Section 319 Cr.P.C. allows court to proceed against any person who is not an accused in a case before it ; Court is sole repository of justice and duty is cast upon it to uphold rule of law and it will be inappropriate to deny existence of such powers with courts in our criminal justice system where it is not uncommon that real accused, at times, get away by manipulating investigating and/or prosecuting agency. (Para 13)

(B) Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 – Section 319 – Summoning of additional accused to face trial – Section 319 Cr.P.C. is an enabling provision empowering court to take appropriate steps for proceeding against any person not being an accused for also having committed offence under trial; power under Section 319(1) Cr.P.C. can be exercised at any stage after charge-sheet is filed and before pronouncement of judgment, except during stage of Sections 207/208 Cr.P.C., committal, etc. which is only a pre-trial stage intended to put process into motion ; Court can exercise power under Section 319 Cr.P.C. only after trial proceeds and commences with recording of evidence ; word “evidence” in Section 319 Cr.P.C. means only such evidence as is made before court, in relation to statements, and as produced before court, in relation to documents ; it is only such evidence that can be taken into account by Magistrate or court to decide whether power under Section 319 Cr.P.C. is to be exercised and not on the basis of material collected during investigation ; if Magistrate/court is convinced even on the basis of evidence appearing in examination-in-chief, it can exercise power under Section 319 Cr.P.C. and can proceed against such other person(s) ; Magistrate/court is convinced even on the basis of evidence appearing in examination-in-chief, powers under Section 319 Cr.P.C. can be exercised ; power under Section 319 Cr.P.C. can be exercised even at the stage of completion of examination-in-chief and court need not has to wait till said evidence is tested on cross-examination ; even in a case where stage of giving opportunity to complainant to file a protest petition urging upon trial court to summon other persons as well who were named in FIR but not implicated in charge-sheet has gone, in that case also, Court is still not powerless by virtue of Section 319 Cr.P.C. and even those persons named in FIR but not implicated in charge-sheet can be summoned to face trial, provided during trial some evidence surfaces against proposed accused (may be in form of examination-in-chief of prosecution witnesses) ; while exercising powers under Section 319 Cr.P.C., Court is not required and/or justified in appreciating deposition/evidence of prosecution witnesses on merits which is required to be done during trial. (Para 13)

(C) Indian Penal Code, 1860 – Sections 302, 307, 341, 148 and 149 – Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 – Section 319 – Murder, attempt to murder and wrongful restraint – Summoning of additional accused to face trial – Powers under Section 319 Cr.P.C. can be exercised at any stage before final conclusion of trial – Trial Court as well as High Court have materially erred in dismissing application under Section 319 Cr.P.C and refusing to summon private respondents herein to face trial in exercising powers under Section 319 Cr.P.C. – Appellant herein is an injured eye-witness – Evidence of an injured eye witness has greater evidential value and unless compelling reasons exist, their statements are not to be discarded lightly – While exercising powers under Section 319 Cr.P.C. Court has not to wait till cross-examination – On the basis of examination-in-chief of a witness if a case is made out, a person can be summoned to face trial under Section 319 Cr.P.C. – At stage of exercising powers under Section 319 Cr.P.C., Court is not required to appreciate and/or enter on merits of allegations of case – Once it is found that Trial Court as well as High Court ought to have summoned private respondents herein as additional accused, belated filing of appeal or not filing appeal at a relevant time cannot be a ground not to direct to summons private respondents herein when this Court has found that a prima facie case is made out against private respondents herein and they are to be summoned to face trial – Even in a case where stage of giving opportunity to complainant to file a protest petition urging upon trial Court to summon other persons as well as who were named in FIR but not implicated in charge-sheet has gone, in that case also, court is still not powerless by virtue of Section 319 Cr.P.C. – Impugned judgment and order passed by High Court and that of trial Court dismissing application under Section 319, Cr.P.C. submitted on behalf of complainant to summon private respondents herein as additional accused quashed and set aside – Application submitted on behalf of complainant to summon private respondents herein allowed and trial Court directed to summon private respondents herein to face trial. (Paras 14, 14.1, 14.2, 14.3, 14.4, 14.5 and 15)

Facts of the case:

What is under challenge in present appeal is impugned judgment and order passed by High Court dismissing the revision application preferred by the appellant herein and confirming the order passed by trial Court rejecting the application under Section 319 Cr.P.C. on behalf of complainant and refusing to summon the private respondents herein as additional accused.

Findings of Court:

High Court has lost sight of the fact that allegations against all the accused persons right from the very beginning were for the offences under Sections 302, 307, 341, 148 & 149 IPC. The High Court has failed to appreciate the fact that for attracting the offence under Section 149 IPC only forming part of unlawful assembly is sufficient and the individual role and/or overt act is immaterial. Therefore, the reasoning given by the High Court that no injury has been attributed to either of the respondents except that they were armed with weapons and therefore, they cannot be added as accused is unsustainable. Trial Court and the High Court have failed to exercise the jurisdiction and/or powers while exercising the powers under Section 319 Cr.P.C.

Result : Appeal allowed.