The central legal point established in the judgment is that the inclusion of a person in the history sheet must be done with caution and care, following the criteria set out in J&K Police Rules 702. The court emphasized the need for detailed particulars and the exercise of subjective satisfaction by the competent authority before branding a person as a history sheeter.

JUDGMENT :

1. The petitioner has sought a direction upon the respondents to delete his name from the History Sheet Register, Surveillance Register with a further direction to remove his photograph form the Police Station, Gandhi Nagar, Jammu.

2. Briefly stated case of the petitioner is that he is a business-man and is one of the highest tax payers of the Union Territory of J&K. According to the petitioner, due to his success in business activities, he has developed rivalry with his competitors, as a result of which, a number of false and frivolous cases came to be registered against him. It has been submitted in the year 2009, the petitioner was implicated in a case, titled, State vs. Jatinder Singh and others and he was charged for offences under Sections 409 and 120-B RPC. Vide judgment dated 10.08.2020, the learned trial court is stated to have acquitted the petitioner of the aforesaid charges. It has been averred that due to false implication in the aforesaid case, his name was entered in the history sheet. When he was acquitted of the charges, he approached Police Station, Gandhi Nagar, Jammu for removal of his name from the history sheet, but without any success. Hence the present writ petition.

3. The respondents in their reply have stated that the petitioner was a history sheeter of Police Station, Satwari and his history sheet was opened in the said Police Station on 15.12.2009. Due to change of the residence of the petitioner, the aforesaid history sheet was transferred from Police Station, Satwari to Police Station, Gandhi Nagar, Jammu pursuant to letter No. CRB/2021/81818/DPOJ dated 09.12.2021 issued by the District Police Office. According to the respondents, the name of the petitioner is existing in history sheet of Police Station, Gandhi Nagar under Bundal B. It has been submitted that the petitioner is involved in FIR No. 247/2009 for offences under Sections 302/34, 201 and 120-B RPC and 3/25/27 of the Arms Act of Police Station, Gandhi Nagar as also in FIR No. 275/2009 for offences under Sections 161 and 165-A RPC and 5(2) P. C. Act of Police Station, Gandhi Nagar, Jammu. Besides these cases, the petitioner is also stated to be involved in FIRs bearing No. 8/2022, 56,/2022, 100/2022, 144/2022 and 150/2022 registered with different Police Stations of District, Roop Nagar, Punjab. It has been further submitted that the petitioner is also involved in a complaint bearing No. 76/6-10 dated 18.06.2019 under Sections 107 and 117 Cr.P.C. filed by Police Station, Gangyal before Executive Magistrate 1st Class, Bahu Jammu. On the strength of aforesaid facts, the respondents have submitted that the name of the petitioner cannot be removed from the history sheet of Police Station, Gandhi Nagar, Jammu.

4. I have heard learned counsel for the parties and I have also gone through the record produced by Ms. Monika Kohli, Sr. AAA on behalf of the respondents.

5. Rules 702, 703 and 704 of the J&K Police Rules govern the preparation of history sheet, prescribe the manner in which history sheet is to be opened as also its custody. These Rules are reproduced as under:

“702. Preparation of history sheets: The initial preparation of a history sheet requires great care, and should invariably be done by the officer incharge of the police station himself or by a thoroughly experienced Assistant Sub Inspector under specific orders.

(1) The description of the criminal should be such as will enable the person reading it to form for himself a picture of the individual described, special attention being given to peculiarities of appearance, gait, speech, etc., by means of which the man may be distinguished.

(2) The space for 'relations and connections' should be filled in with a view to affording clues to those persons with whom the criminal is likely to harbour when wanted by the police, including relations or friends living at a distance from his home and his associates in crime, abettors and receivers, The particular nature of each person's conne