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IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
A. Badharudeen, J.
Muhammed Ramees - Petitioner
Versus
State of Kerala, Represented By Public Prosecutor - Respondent
CRL.MC NO. 1419 OF 2022
Decided On : 16-08-2024
Privacy - Criminal Procedure - Sections 207, 208, 482 of CrPC - The court emphasized the balance between the accused's right to a fair trial and the victim's right to privacy, allowing inspection of sensitive materials while protecting victim identity.
Fact of the Case:
The petitioner, accused in a criminal case, sought copies of evidence including a pen drive and WhatsApp messages, which the prosecution opposed, citing victim privacy concerns.
Finding of the Court:
The court ruled that while the accused has a right to access evidence for defense, sensitive materials affecting victim privacy should only be inspected, not copied, to protect the victim's identity.
Issues: Whether the accused is entitled to copies of evidence that may compromise the victim's privacy, and how to balance the rights of the accused and the victim.
Ratio Decidendi: The court held that electronic records are documents under the law, and while the accused should generally receive copies, exceptions exist to protect victim privacy.
Result: The petition was dismissed, upholding the trial court's order regarding the inspection of sensitive materials.
ORDER :
A. BADHARUDEEN, J.
In this Criminal Miscellaneous Case filed under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, the petitioner, who is the accused in S.C.No.1042/2019 on the files of Fast Track Special Court, Perinthalmanna, assails Annexure-A2 order, whereby the learned Special Judge dismissed C.M.P.No.306/2021 in the above case filed by the petitioner seeking to furnish a copy of the pen drive seized by the investigating officer on 27.04.2018, still photos seized on the same day, voice messages and chattings in the WhatsApp through mobile phone seized on 11.05.2018 and 02.06.2018 on the allegation that the said documents were not furnished to him.
2. The prosecution side opposed the petition mainly contending that the visual contents asked for contain physical evidence of commission of the crime and therefore, furnishing a copy of the said documents and the material objects to the petitioner would amount to further insult to the victim.
3. The trial court relied on the decisions, placed by both sides, of the Apex Court reported in [2019(4) KLT 853], Gopalakrishnan @ Dileep v. State of Kerala; [AIR 1996 SC 1393], State of Punjab v. Gurmit Singh & Ors.; [2004 (1) SCC 475], State of Karnataka v. Puttaraja; and [2019 (2) SCC 703], Nipun Saxena & anr. v. Union of India & Ors. and of this Court reported in [2019 (4) KLT 159], Rasaq v. State of Kerala, and held in paragraph 10 as under:
“10. Therefore, to balance the interests of the victim for securing her privacy and identity and the accused to have effectively defend himself during trial, instead of furnishing copy of the pen drive to the petitioner and other accused, permitting inspection of the contents of pen drive and other offensive pictures, if any, to the accused and their counsel will meet the ends of justice. Other documents in which the prosecution did not have objection, copies shall be furnished to the petitioner and also to the other accused, if not furnished already. Accordingly, the petition was allowed in part and the reliefs granted are as under:
a) directing the prosecution to furnish to the petitioner the copy of the documents except the contents of the pen drive and other pictures of the victim involving her privacy and identity;
b) the petitioner or his counsel can inspect the contents of the pen drive and other such pictures, if necessary, with permission of the Court;
c) it is made clear that in the event of such permission to inspect the above said records, nobody shall be permitted to carry any devices including electronic device, camera and mobile phone which may have the capability of copying or transferring such record or the contents thereof or mutating its contents in any manner.”
4. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned Public Prosecutor in detail. Perused the relevant documents.
5. Coming to the legal issue involved, furnishing of copies of prosecution records to the accused in compliance with Sections 207 and 208 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, is mandatory, subject to limited exceptions. In this context, the decision in Gopalakrishnan @ Dileep’s case (supra) is relevant. In the said case, the Apex Court held that the contents of memory card/pen drive, being electronic record, must be regarded as a document. If the prosecution is relying on the same, ordinarily, the accused must be given a cloned copy thereof to enable him/her to present an effective defence during the trial. In the decision reported in Gopalakrishnan @ Dileep’s case (supra), the Apex Court held as under in paragraphs 42 to 44 as under:
“42. Nevertheless, the Court cannot be oblivious to the nature of offence and the principle underlying the amendment to Section 327 of the 1973 Code, in particular sub-section (2) thereof and insertion of Section 228A of the 1860 Code, for securing the privacy of the victim and her identity. Thus understood, the Court is obliged to evolve a mechanism to enable the accused to reassure himself about the genuineness and cred
AI
The court established that victim privacy must be protected even while ensuring the accused's right to a fair trial, allowing only inspection of sensitive evidence.
In criminal trials, documents relied upon by the prosecution should generally be supplied to the accused, but exceptions exist in cases involving privacy or identity issues, where the accused may be ....
The court established that the accused's right to fair trial includes access to unmasked prosecution records, balanced against the need to protect the victim's identity.
Accused have the right to access a transcript of the victim's Audio/Video Recorded Statement to ensure a fair trial and effective defense.
The main legal point established in the judgment is that statutory provisions and directions issued by the Supreme Court provide adequate safeguards to protect the interests of victims of sexual offe....
Important Point:a) A criminal trial cannot be allowed to assume the character of fishing and roving enquiryb) it was the duty of the prosecution to ensure fair trial for both the prosecution and the ....
The accused is entitled to document disclosure under Section 207 of Cr.P.C. for a fair trial, including materials not necessarily relied upon by prosecution.
Unauthorized access to evidence in court custody constitutes a violation of privacy rights, necessitating an inquiry to uphold the dignity and fundamental rights of the victim.
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