Individuals must pursue statutory remedies under CrPC before seeking judicial intervention under Article 226.

JUDGMENT

The prayers in this Writ Petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India are as follows:-

“i. Issue a writ in the nature of mandamus or any other appropriate writ, order or direction, commanding the 5^th respondent to register a crime and conduct investigation in the case;

ii. Issue a writ in the nature of mandamus or any other appropriate writ, order or direction, commanding the 2^nd respondent to initiate disciplinary proceedings against the 3^rd, 4^th and 5^th respondent for the willful disobedience to the judgment of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in Lalita Kumari v. Government of Utter Pradesh, reported in 2014(2) SCC 1 within a time frame that may be fixed by this Hon’ble Court;

iii. Issue any such other appropriate writ, order or direction as this Hon’ble Court deems fit and proper considering the circumstances of the case in the interest of justice.”

2. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned Public Prosecutor.

3. The petitioner filed a complaint against her brother and two others alleging that they committed criminal conspiracy, forgery etc., in the process of transferring a vehicle which originally stood in the name of their father. The Station House Officer, Pookkottumpadam Police Station, (respondent No.5), received a complaint on 08.10.2025, as forwarded to him by the District Police Chief, Malappuram. Respondent No.5 did not registered any FIR, as he found it appropriate to conduct a preliminary enquiry in the matter.

4. The learned Public Prosecutor, upon instructions, submitted that as part of the preliminary inquiry, the SHO tried to contact the petitioner for recording her statement to obtain more precised information regarding the allegations. The learned Public Prosecutor further submitted that the petitioner was not ready to give more precised information necessary for registering a case. Therefore, no crime was registered in the matter.

5. The petitioner seeks a direction to respondent No.5 to register a crime and conduct investigation in the matter. She is also seeking a direction to take disciplinary action against respondent Nos. 3, 4 and 5.

6. If a petitioner has a grievance that the police is not registering the FIR under Section 154 of Cr.P.C., then he can approach the Superintendent of Police under Section 154 (3) of Cr.P.C. by an application in writing. Even that does not yield any result, it is open to the aggrieved person to file an application under Section 156 (3) of Cr.P.C. before the learned Magistrate concerned. In the present case, the petitioner has alternate remedies available.

7. While dealing with a similar fact situations, this Court in G. S. Sreekumar v. State of Kerala and Others ( 2022 KHC 1013 ) held thus:-

15. Chapter XII of the Code of Criminal Procedure prescribes the procedure to investigate cognizable offences. Subsection (1) of Section 154 Cr.P.C. says that every information relating to the commission of a cognizable offence, if given orally to an officer in charge of a police station, shall be reduced to writing by him or under his direction, and be read over to the informant and every such information, whether given in writing or reduced to writing as aforesaid, shall be signed by the person giving it, and the substance thereof shall be entered in a book to be kept by such officer in such form as the State Government may prescribe in this behalf. Section 156 Cr.P.C. empowers the Police Officer to investigate into cognizable offence on receipt of such information and the same is reduced to writing. The procedure for investigation is provided in Section 157 Cr.P.C. After conducting the investigation prescribed in the manner envisaged in Chapter XII, charge sheet shall be submitted to the Court having jurisdiction to take cognizance