Police officers are mandated to register FIRs immediately upon receiving cognizable offence complaints to ensure accountability and fair investigations.

ORDER

1. Heard Mr. P Roy Barman, learned senior counsel assisted by Mr. K Nath, learned counsel appearing for the petitioner as well as Mr. P Saha, learned counsel appearing for the respondents.

2. The petitioner filed one complaint to the Officer in-charge of the Madhupur Police Station which was later on registered as Madhupur PS Case No.2022MDP007 under Sections 326 /379/435/506/34 IPC on 06.03.2022. The complaint has been claimed to have been filed on the very day when the offence took place i.e. on 01.03.2022. The petitioner by filing this writ petition has urged for directing the respondents to treat the complaint filed by the petitioner as the First Information Report (FIR) for purpose of investigation and prosecuting the offenders.

3. Despite the complaint was filed by the petitioner to the Officer-in-charge of the Madhupur Police Station disclosing cognizable offences, no specific case was registered before 06.03.2022. According to the petitioner, the police failed to discharge their duties and to book the accused person on the teeth of time. At the time of filing the writ petition, the petitioner did not have any knowledge that a specific case has been registered after 5/6 days.

4. The petitioner has stated that he has a rubber plantation spreading over a tract of land measuring about 7 kanis [by local measures] recorded against plots No. 1591, 1592, 1593 and 2208/6865 comprised in khatian No. 2110, corresponding to present plots No. 2211, comprised in khatian No. 2132, present plots No. 1578, 1568, 1622 and 2212 recorded in khatian No. 2097, present plots No. 2210 and 2219 comprised in khatian No. 2117, present plot No. 2201 comprised in khatian No. 2020, situated in Mouja Purathal Rajnagar, Tehsil Madhupur, Sub- Division Bishalgarh, Revenue Circle Bishalgarh, Sepahijala District. The petitioner claimed that he grew the rubber plantation over that land.

5. The 'deadly' accused persons demanded a sum of Rs. 5,00,000/- from the petitioner and threatened that unless the money is paid they will not allow the petitioner to enter into his own rubber plantation. The petitioner was severely assaulted on 01.03.2022 by them and as a result he was taken to the Bishalgarh Sub-Divisional Hospital.

6. The written complaint was filed even though on 01.03.2022 but it was shown to have been filed on 06.03.2022 by the police.

7. The petitioner suffered grievous injuries on 01.03.2022 in the said occurrence. The complaint that has been filed by the petitioner (Anenxure-2 to the writ petition) has disclosed commission of cognizable offence but the Officer-in-charge of the Madhupur Police Station played deviant role and did not register FIR in the earliest.

8. The ancillary allegations as made against the police are that notwithstanding the filing of the complaint, no receipt was given by the police in violation of the direction of the apex court in Lalita Kumari Vs. Government of Uttar Pradesh and Ors. reported in (2014) 2 SCC 1.

9. It has been held in Lalita Kumari (supra) as under:

(2) A copy of the information as recorded under sub-section (1) shall be given forthwith, free of cost, to the informant.

(3) Any person aggrieved by a refusal on the part of an officer in charge of a police station to record the information referred to in sub-section (1) may send the substance of such information, in writing and by post, to the Superintendent of Police concerned who, if satisfied that such information discloses the commission of a cognizable offence, shall either investigate the case himself or direct an investigation to be made by any police officer subordinate to him, in the manner provided by this Code, and such officer shall have all the power