HC requests Judicial Academy to hold training programmes for magistrates

The Madras High court on Monday passed a judicial order requesting the Tamil Nadu State Judicial Academy to conduct training programmes for judicial magistrates on the subject of taking cognisance of complaints filed for offences under Sections 172 (absconding to avoid service of summons or other proceedings) to 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by a public servant) of the Indian Penal Code.

First Division Bench of Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice Abdul Quddhose made the request while disposing of a public interest litigation petition. M. Balaji, 39, a Chennai-based advocate had filed the petition seeking a direction to the police to desist from filing First Information Reports for the offences under Sections 172 to 188 and filing final reports in cases booked under those provisions since it was not permissible under law.

‘Police have no authority’

During the course of arguments, the petitioner’s counsel brought it to the notice of the court that prosecution for offences under Sections 172 to 188 could be initiated only if a public servant had lodged a complaint in writing either to his superiors or to the jurisdictional court. The police do not have any authority to register FIRs under those provisions of law and to file final reports in such cases, he claimed.

The counsel pointed out that there was a specific bar under Section 195(1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure restraining lower courts from taking cognisance of such offences unless the complaint had been made by a public servant. Yet, in reality, the police were filing FIRs under those provisions and the judicial magistrates were also taking cognisance of those offences, he claimed and urged the High Court to stop the practice.

However, the Chief Justice told him that the High Court does not exercise administrative control over the Police department and therefore such a direction could not be issued in a public interest litigation petition especially when any wrong committed by a lower court was always subject to review by the High Court. She added that the judicial magistrates could always be trained on such issues since they were subordinate to the High Court.

The Chief Justice pointed out that she was the patron-in-chief of the judicial academy headed by Justice S. Manikumar and therefore it could be requested to conduct training programmes for the magistrates on the specific subject.