The central legal point established in the judgment is the requirement of a reasonable connection between the alleged act and the discharge of official duty for the protection under Section 197 of the Code of Criminal Procedure to apply.

JUDGMENT

(Prayer: Criminal Original Petitions filed under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, to call for the records and quash the proceedings as against the petitioner in C.C.No.396 of 2022, pending on the file of the Judicial Magistrate No.II, Thiruvallur.)

Seeking to quash the proceedings in C.C.No.396 of 2022, pending on the file of the learned Judicial Magistrate No.II, Thiruvallur, the petitioner is before this Court with this petition.

2. The gist of the case is that the respondent/complainant along with his friend had gone to Pattabiram, Chennai, to attend funeral of his friend, at that time, a man, who was in an inebriated state, obstructed the complainant and there was quarrel. The complainant along with his friend one Manikandan had quarrelled with the drunken man. At that time, the Sub Inspector of Police and Head Constable attached to the Pattabiram Police Station came there, took the complainant to the Police Station, where the petitioner, Inspector of Police, who handcuffed the complainant and another and also detained them in the Police Station till 11.00 p.m. Thereafter, a case under Section 75 of the City Police Act is said to have been foisted against him.

3. Mr.M.Mohamed Riyaz, the learned counsel appearing for the petitioner would submit that the respondent / complainant not sent any complaint to Police officials, not produced any material to prove that a complaint has been earlier sent by him and the same not acted upon. On the other hand, the complainant directly approached the learned Judicial Magistrate No.II, Thiruvallur and the learned Magistrate after recording the statement of the complainant, took the complaint on file in C.C.No.396 of 2022. After recording the sworn statement, the learned Magistrate had taken cognizance for the offences under Sections 323 and 341 IPC alone. Thus, it is apparent that the entire statement of the complainant has not been satisfactory to take cognizance.

4. Learned counsel for the petitioner contended that this Court and the Hon''ble Supreme Court time and again held that the sanction under Section 197 Cr.P.C. is required even though there might be excess in discharging official duty. Here, the admitted case of the complainant is that the petitioner was in the Police Station, when the complainant present and the petitioner had given certain directions to the subordinates against him. This utmost can be excess in discharge of his official duty, for which, the sanction under Section 197 Cr.P.C., is necessary. Further, learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that the offence under Section 323 I.P.C. is in respect of simple injury, but the complainant has not taken any treatment to confirm that he was injured while he was detained in Pattabiram Police Station.

5. The learned counsel for the petitioner, in support of his contentions, has relied on the Judgment of the Hon''ble Apex Court in D.Devaraja Vs. Owais Sabeer Hussain reported in (2020) 7 SCC 695, wherein it has been held as follows-

“65. The law relating to the requirement of sanction to entertain and/or take cognizance of an offence, allegedly committed by a police officer under Section 197 of the Code of Criminal Procedure read with Section 170 of the Karnataka Police Act, is well settled by this Court, inter alia by its decisions referred to above.

66. Sanction of the Government, to prosecute a police officer, for any act related to the discharge of an official duty, is imperative to protect the police officer from facing harassive, retaliatory, revengeful and frivolous proceedings. The requirement of sanction from the government, to prosecute would give an upright police officer the confidence to discharge his official duties efficiently, without fear of vindictive retaliation by initiation of criminal action, from which he would be protected under Section 197 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, read with Section 170 of the Karnataka Police Act. At the same time, if