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Rajasthan Clarifies Powers Regarding Against Accused In Criminal Matters
In a significant ruling addressing the boundaries of , the of Judicature for Rajasthan has clarified the scope of a ’s power when reviewing criminal proceedings. Justice Anoop Kumar Dhand, presiding over the matter, held that a does not possess the legal jurisdiction to mandate that a take of an offense, emphasizing that such courts are limited to ordering further inquiries under existing legal provisions.
Case Background
The dispute arose from a matrimonial case originally filed in . The complainant, Smt. Uganti, had filed a report with the in Sawaimadhopur, leading to an investigation that resulted in a . Although the complainant filed a , the initially accepted the negative report in . Following this, the complainant moved a revision petition before the (Special Judge), who subsequently ordered the to take against the accused under . The petitioners, aggrieved by this mandate, challenged the order before the .
Legal Arguments
Counsel for the petitioners argued that the exceeded its legal authority by directing the to initiate , a decision that purportedly ignored settled precedents. Relying on the ruling in , the petitioners contended that the regarding was not sustainable. Conversely, the ’s representative did not contest the legal limitations but maintained the necessity of judicial oversight in such matters.
Analysis of
The ’s analysis centered on a strict interpretation of . Justice Dhand observed that Section 398 empowers the or a , upon examining records, to direct a to make "" into a complaint that has been dismissed or into the case of a discharged person. The Court reasoned that this authority does not extend to usurping the discretionary power of the trial magistrate to form an independent opinion on the evidence and decide whether to take .
Key Observations
The judgment highlighted several critical points regarding the nature of
:
*
"The
possesses no such power or jurisdiction to issue such directions in the light of Section 398 Cr.P.C."
*
"From a bare perusal of the aforesaid provision, it is ipso facto clear that the
/
or Additional
cannot issue a direction to the
to take
against the accused."
*
"If the
was of the view that the order passed by the learned
was
, the matter could have been
to the
for passing fresh order on the basis of the evidence available on the record."
Final Decision
The proceeded to set aside the order passed by the Additional dated . To resolve the long-standing delay—the FIR being nearly two decades old—the Court the matter back to the , Sawaimadhopur. The has been directed to conduct a into the and pass a fresh order on the merits of the case, ideally within six months. This ruling reinforces the functional separation between revisional and trial courts, ensuring that the initial judicial determination of remains with the magistrate, free from external mandate.
