Territorial jurisdiction is determinable only in respect of enquiries and trials and not for the purpose of investigation.

1. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned Government Advocate (Crl. side) for the State.

2. The def-facto complainant is the petitioner before this Court. It is the case of the de-facto complainant that she got married to the accused by name Nagore Meeran on 27.09.2010 and that she was subjected to cruelty and violence. The parental home of the de-facto complainant is in Manapparai within the territorial jurisdiction of the All Women Police Station, Manapparai. Therefore, she lodged a complaint with the Sub-Inspector of Police, All Women Police Station, Manapparai, on 11.04.2014 based on which a case in Manapparai All Women Police Station Crime No.4 of 2014 was registered on 11.04.2014 for offences under Sections 498A, 406, 506 (ii) and Section 4 of Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Women Harassment Act. After registering the FIR, the police arrested the said Nagore Meeran on 11.04.2014 and produced him before the Judicial Magistrate, Manapparai for remand. The Judicial Magistrate, after going through the records had held as follows:

"Accused produced before me at 4.10 P.M. perused the available materials, no complaint of ill treatment by police, Accused sated that, he was in the police station since yesterday 8.00 P.M. perused the available materials. The accused was sent for remand alleging that he committed offences under Section 498(A), 406 and U/s.4 of Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Harassment of Women Act. The available materials would show that all the alleged occurrence took place at the matrimonial home which is located at Natham, Dindigul. Though the offence U/s.498(A) is continuing offence the same was not continued to Manapparai within the territorial jurisdiction of this Court. The All Women police station has no territorial jurisdiction to register the case as the offence were not done within its jurisdiction. The Investigation Officer ought to have transmitted the FIR to concerned jurisdiction police station but continued to arrest the accused which is part of investigation that too without jurisdiction hence the arrest of the accused is without jurisdiction. No doubt that when an accused of offence is forwarded to a Magistrate whether he has jurisdiction or not, he may authrise remand, and subsequently forward him to the Jurisdictional Magistrate. But it the case on hand the arrest as well as registering the case is itself without jurisdiction, hence this court declines to remand the accused to judicial custody since it is illegal arrest. In fine the request for remand is rejected and the accused is set at liberty."

3. It is the fundamental principle of criminal law that territorial jurisdiction is determinable only in respect of enquiries and trials and not for the purpose of investigation. The Supreme Court in Satvinder Kaur vs. State (Government of N.C.T. of Delhi) [AIR 1999 SC 3596] and another has held thus:

"Therefore, to say at the stage of investigation that S.H.O., Police Station, New Delhi was not having territorial jurisdiction, is on the face of it, illegal and erroneous. That apart, S.156(2) contains an embargo that no proceeding of a police officer shall be challenged on the ground that he has no territorial power to investigate."

In the light of Section 156(2) Cr.P.C., the Magistrate cannot insist upon territorial jurisdiction for investigation at the time of remand. The Magistrate in one breath says that he has the power under Section 167 Cr.P.C. to remand the accused but simultaneously, refuses to remand the accused on the specious reasoning that the police do not have territorial jurisdiction to investigate the case. This is indeed appalling and shocking. The Magistrate has set the accused at liberty when the accused was never in the custody of the Magistrate. On account of this, the accused has walked out of the Court right under the nose of the Investigating Officer making a mockery of the whole system. He has had the last laugh in this episode. This Court takes serious n