IMPORTANT POINTS
(1) FIR – There is no absolute rule that preliminary inquiry must be conducted in every case before registration of FIR – Police authorities are obligated to register FIR when information received prima facie discloses a cognizable offence.
(2) Judicial overreach – Courts cannot rewrite statutory provisions or introduce additional procedural safeguards that are not contemplated by law.

JUDGMENT :

(Vikram Nath, J.)

1. Leave granted.

2. The present appeal has been filed challenging the judgment and order dated 31.01.2024 passed by the High Court of Gujarat in R/Special Criminal Application (Direction) No. 1321 of 2024, whereby the High Court dismissed the appellant’s plea seeking a writ of mandamus directing the respondent authorities to conduct a preliminary inquiry before registering any First Information Report¹[FIR] against him for acts performed in his official capacity.

3. The facts leading to the present appeal are that the appellant is a retired Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer who served in various administrative capacities, including as the Collector of Kachchh District, Gujarat, between 2003 and 2006. Several FIRs have been registered against the appellant in connection with alleged irregularities in land allotment orders passed during his tenure as the Collector. The allegations against the appellant primarily pertain to abuse of official position, corrupt practices, and financial irregularities in the allotment of government land. It is pertinent to note that the first FIR in this regard was registered in 2010, followed by successive FIRs lodged against the appellant. The appellant has remained in judicial custody over the course of this period in connection with these cases, and trials are ongoing before competent Courts.

4. Aggrieved by the registration of multiple FIRs, the appellant approached the High Court of Gujarat by way of a writ petition under Articles 14, 20, 21, 22, and 226 of the Constitution of India. The primary relief sought in the writ petition was for the issuance of a writ of mandamus or any other appropriate writ, order, or direction, directing the respondent authorities to conduct a preliminary inquiry before registering any further FIRs against him. The appellant contended that his Fundamental Rights, particularly his right to liberty under Article 21, were being violated due to successive and arbitrary registration of criminal cases without conducting a preliminary inquiry. He further contended that these FIRs were lodged with an ulterior motive to harass him and prevent him from effectively defending himself in the pending cases. In support of his submissions, the appellant placed reliance on the judgment of this Hon’ble Court in Lalita Kumari v. Government of Uttar Pradesh & Ors., (2014) 2 SCC 1 to argue that the registration of an FIR should be preceded by a preliminary inquiry in cases involving allegations of abuse of official position.

5. The State of Gujarat, opposing the petition, argued before the High Court that the relief sought by the appellant was legally untenable. It was contended that under the settled position of law, once information regarding the commission of a cognizable offence is received, the police authorities are duty- bound to register an FIR under Section 154 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.³[CrPC]. The State further argued that granting the appellant’s request for a mandatory preliminary inquiry would amount to granting him a blanket protection against investigation, which is impermissible under law. The State also submitted that the appellant’s reliance on Lalita Kumari (supra) was misplaced, as the judgment itself clarified that preliminary inquiry is required only in limited categories of cases, such as family disputes, commercial matters, and medical negligence cases, and not where clear allegations of cognizable offences exist.

6. The High Court, after hearing both parties, dismissed the appellant’s writ petition. The High Court held that once a cognizable offence is disclosed in the complaint, the police authorities are under a statutory obligation to register an FIR and conduct an investigation. Relying on the principles laid down in Lalita Kumari (supra), the High Court observed that a preliminary inquiry is warranted only in cases where there is doubt as to whether a cognizable offence is disclosed. However, in the present