Rape FIR under CrPC on day 1 of new laws nixed, fresh report ordered

Bengaluru: The high court has quashed one of the first FIRs registered in the state on July 1 after the new criminal laws kicked in, as it had been done under the old Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC).
The court, however, directed police to register a new FIR based on the same complaint in which a woman had accused a man of raping and cheating her on the promise of marriage as the allegations were serious and merited an investigation.
A nurse working in a govt hospital lodged a rape and cheating complaint on July 1, 2024, with Lingsugur police against a D group govt employee. The same was registered under IPC. She claimed the accused, who helped her when her husband met with an accident, promised to marry her but sexually assaulted her on June 24, 2021, and also did not return the Rs 13.5 lakh amount he had taken from her. The FIR was registered under Section 154 of the CrPC for the offences punishable under Sections 376, 323, 506, and 420 of the IPC.
Challenging the same, the accused argued that since the complaint was registered on July 1, 2024, it should have been under Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Samhita (BNSS) and added that there was an inordinate delay of three years.
The govt advocate submitted that since this was the first FIR registered after BNSS kicked in, police were not able to change the format of the FIR in the computer from CrPC into BNSS.
"Therefore, an error crept in... but that itself is not a ground for quashing the FIR. Merely mentioning the wrong provision itself is not a ground to quash the entire FIR and complaint," he added.
Justice K Natarajan said the woman is not at fault for police registering the FIR under CrPC and therefore, police are required to register a fresh FIR under Section 173 of BNSS. The FIR is quashed but the complaint is retained, he said.
"In respect of the merits of the case, there is a serious allegation against the petitioner for having cheated the complainant physically as well as financially, and the matter requires investigation. Therefore, at this stage, even if the FIR is quashed on the technical ground, police can register a fresh FIR under Section 173 of BNSS," the judge observed while allowing the petition.
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BOX
Register FIR under new law
for pre-July 1 offences: HC
FIRs registered on or after July 1, 2024, with regard to offences committed earlier should be registered under Section 173 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Samhita (BNSS) and relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) must be invoked, apart from any other special laws but the investigation shall be be conducted and final report be submitted under the BNSS, the high court has said.
"If the offences are committed on or after July 1, 2024, then they shall be registered under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) 2023 and any other special law, and the investigation and final report should be filed under the BNSS. The appeal, revision, petition, trial, application or investigation pending on or before the commencement of BNSS should be disposed of under CrPC, and the final report shall be filed after the investigation under Section 173 of CrPC. The trial courts should follow this procedure, and the DG and IGP should circulate this aspect to all the police stations to follow suit," Justice K Natarajan said.