Victim Also Has Right To Seek Speedy Trial Like Accused
“to say that the role of the victim is limited to being a witness, is not correct. A victim or the legal guardian of the victim is a definite stakeholder…
Hearing Of Accused Necessary When Cognizance Taken After BNSS Came Into Force, Though Complaint Filed Earlier
SCOI recently held that where a Magistrate applied judicial mind and found a prima facie case only after the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS) came into force, cognizance is…
Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 — Section 415 — Appeal — Maintainability — Conviction recorded for first time by appellate court reversing acquittal — An appeal under Section 374 CrPC (Section 415 BNSS) is not maintainable against a judgment of conviction recorded by a Sessions Court while exercising appellate jurisdiction and reversing an order of acquittal passed by the Trial Court — No such second appeal is contemplated under CrPC or BNSS — The only remedy available is revision under Section 397 r/w 401 CrPC (Section 438 r/w 442 BNSS)
2026 INSC 770 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH VISHNU KUMAR GUPTA Vs. STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH AND ANOTHER ( Before : Aravind Kumar and Prasanna B. Varale, JJ. )…
Bail — Grant of — High Court’s order reversed — High Court granted bail without considering material facts and circumstances, particularly the FIR, post-mortem report, recovery of weapon, and witness statements, relying solely on absence of allegations in inquest proceedings.
2026 INSC 527 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH BHAGAT SINGH Vs. THE STATE OF UTTAR PRADESH AND ANOTHER ( Before : Sanjay Karol and Nongmeikapam Kotiswar Singh, JJ. )…
Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS) — Section 223(1) first proviso — Applicability of — Proceedings under Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA) filed before commencement of BNSS — Cognizance taken after commencement of BNSS — Accused not given opportunity of hearing at cognizance stage — Provision mandates hearing of accused before taking cognizance — Non-compliance is an illegality vitiating cognizance order — High Court judgment set aside.
2026 INSC 519 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH PARVINDER SINGH Vs. DIRECTORATE OF ENFORCEMENT ( Before : M. M. Sundresh and Nongmeikapam Kotiswar Singh, JJ. ) Criminal Appeal No……..of…
Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (CrPC) — Section 432 — Constitution of India, 1950 — Article 72 & 161— Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS) — Section 473 & 477 — Premature release of a prisoner — Rejection of recommendation — Non-speaking order — Order rejecting premature release must provide reasons and reflect due application of mind — Absence of reasons renders the order bald and impossible to ascertain if relevant factors were considered — Violates principles of natural justice and frustrates judicial review.
2026 INSC 490 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH ROHIT CHATURVEDI Vs. STATE OF UTTARAKHAND AND OTHERS ( Before : B.V. Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan, JJ. ) Writ Petition (Criminal)…
Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS) — Section 175(4) — Complaints against public servants alleged to have committed offenses in discharge of official duties — Interpretation — This provision is not a standalone provision, nor is it a proviso to Section 175(3) — It must be read in harmony with Section 175(3), with Section 175(4) forming an extension of Section 175(3) — The power to order investigation under Section 175(3) is conferred upon a judicial magistrate, while Section 175(4) also confers such power but prescribes a special procedure for complaints against public servants — The expression “complaint” in Section 175(4) does not encompass oral complaints and must be understood in the context of a written complaint supported by an affidavit, as required by Section 175(3) — This interpretation ensures that the procedural safeguard of an affidavit, mandated by Priyanka Srivastava v. State of U.P., is not undermined even when dealing with public servants — The intention is to provide a two-tier protection: first, at the threshold stage under Section 175(4) with additional safeguards, and second, at the post-investigation stage under Section 218(1) regarding previous sanction. (Paras 26, 31, 37.1, 37.2, 37.4, 37.5, 37.6, 37.8, 38, 39, 40, 42, 43, 44)
2026 INSC 88 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH XXX Vs. STATE OF KERALA AND OTHERS ( Before : Dipankar Datta and Manmohan, JJ. ) Criminal Appeal No. 4629 of…
Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS) — Section 528 — Penal Code, 1860 (IPC) — Sections 376, 376(2)(n), and 507 — Allegation of rape based on false promise of marriage — Relationship continued for three years; physical relations established multiple times — Complainant, an educated and married woman, engaged in the relationship voluntarily and without protest or complaint until the break-up — Lodging of FIR three months after the last physical contact, subsequent to the appellant refusing a demand for money — Held, the relationship was consensual; physical intimacy in a long-standing, functioning relationship, which later turns acrimonious, cannot be retrospectively branded as rape — Refusal to fulfill a monetary demand led to the institution of criminal proceedings, amounting to an abuse of the court machinery — FIR and Charge-sheet quashed. (Paras 6, 7, 9, 16, 23, 28, 29, 32, 33, 40, 41)
2025 INSC 1351 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH SAMADHAN S/O SITATRAM MANMOTHE Vs. STATE OF MAHARASTHRA AND ANOTHER ( Before : B.V. Nagarathna and R. Mahadevan, JJ. ) Criminal…
Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023 — Section 179 — Summoning of Advocate by Investigating Agency — Advocate representing accused cannot be summoned directly to elicit case details as it violates advocate-client privilege and constitutional rights of the accused, unless specific exceptions under Section 132 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA) apply.
2025 INSC 1275 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA 3 JUDGES BENCH IN RE: SUMMONING ADVOCATES WHO GIVE LEGAL OPINION OR REPRESENT PARTIES DURING INVESTIGATION OF CASES AND RELATED ISSUES. ( Before…
Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (CrPC) — Section 482 (Corresponding to Bharatiya Nagarika Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, Section 528) — Inherent power of High Court — Recall or review of own judgment — Criminal courts do not have the power to recall or review their own judgments, except for correcting clerical errors under Section 362 CrPC (Section 403 BNSS) — Invoking inherent powers to bypass statutory bars is impermissible — High Court reviewing its earlier order dismissing a petition as withdrawn, under the guise of correcting a clerical error, is illegal and without jurisdiction.
2025 INSC 1205 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH STATE OF RAJASTHAN Vs. PARMESHWAR RAMLAL JOSHI AND OTHERS ( Before : Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta, JJ. ) Criminal Appeal…