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An FIR is
a First Information Report. It is a statement of facts as best remembered
by the complainant.
Any person
or complainant may go to a police station and ask to lodge an FIR reporting
an offence that he believes to have been committed. He is required to
state the facts to the best of his knowledge to the duty officer.
It is important
to know that all offences can be broadly divided into two categories:
Cognizable Offences and Non Cognizable Offences. The former are offences
where the police are bound to register a case and proceed with investigation.
Once registered, the case is the sole responsibility of the police and
they are required to see the case through to its natural conclusion. Non
Cognizable offences are those in which the police need not register a
criminal complaint. The complaint is required to seek relief in a civil
court of law.
Once the
duty officer is certain that the offence alleged to have been committed
lies in the category of cognizable offences, he shall direct the complainant
to put his statement in writing. In the presence of the complainant, the
duty officer shall complete all the columns in the FIR register with the
information given by the complainant. He shall then read out all the contents
of the FIR registered to the complainant. Once the complainant is certain
that all the details have been correctly written, he should sign the FIR.
It is important
to know that an FIR will not be considered a valid document unless it
has been stamped by the Duty Officer with the stamp of the police station
along with his signature and a serial number allotted to the report.
It is important
for the complainant to demand a carbon copy of the FIR as lodged by him
so that no alterations are possible later.
Once the
formalities have been completed, the duty officer assigns the case to
an officer, not below the rank of a sub inspector, who then is known as
the IO (Investigating Officer). Meanwhile, depending on the urgency of
the matter, police personnel are deployed to the scene of the crime to
assess the situation and render any assistance if required.
After the
complaint has been lodged, the complainant is free to leave and he cannot
in any circumstance be subjected to restraint or inconvenience.
The complainant
shall merely report the facts as known by him. He is not required to prove
his allegations in any manner at the police station. The FIR is a statement
by the complainant of an alleged offence. It is the job of the police
to ascertain facts, verify details and substantiate the charges or otherwise.
Depending
on the urgency of the matter, the IO begins his investigation through
local enquiry, collection of evidence, verification of facts etc. On completion
of his investigation, he shall submit a report along with his recommendations.
If required, a charge sheet is filed, an arrest is made and the accused
is presented in court within 24 hours of his arrest.
From here,
legal procedures take over and what follows depends on the discretion
of the court. In short, the prosecution is expected to prove their case
against the accused with all evidence and proof. Should the evidence be
adequate, the accused may be sentenced to whatever punishment reccommended
for the offence in that Act. Although all this sounds very simple, this
whole exercise often takes up to a year or even more.
This is what
the law describes to be the normal course of action in a registered complaint.
What actually happens is a different story altogether.
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