- Apex court bars police from registering multiple FIRs in a case
ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court (SC) on Wednesday ruled that no person can be arrested immediately after he is named in a first information report (FIR) unless sufficient material or evidence exists of his crime.
This was ruled by a seven-member larger bench of the court, headed by Justice Khosa, hearing a case. The court passed the orders in connection with an application filed with the Human Rights Cell of the apex court.
The top court said that no person is to be arrested straightaway only because he has been nominated as an accused person in an FIR or in any other version of the incident brought to the notice of the investigating officer by any person until the investigating officer feels satisfied that sufficient justification exists for his arrest.
For such justification, he is to be guided by the relevant provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 and the Police Rules, 1934.
The court also declared that multiple FIRs cannot be registered in any case.
“There is no ground for another FIR after lodging the first FIR in a case,” read the verdict.
Instead of lodging a new FIR, the investigation officer of a case should record the statement of the relevant person if a new angle surfaces during a probe into a case, the court verdict read.
The apex court said in its verdict that it is an obligation for an investigation officer to investigate all aspects of a case. The officer is responsible for highlighting the truth. The purpose of filing a case is to unveil the truth and catch the guilty people.
A challan should be submitted to a trial court after completion of investigations into the case. The court decided and directed the authorities to send copies of the ruling to all police chiefs. The bench also directed all inspector generals to ensure implementation of the verdict in letter and spirit.
The human rights application was filed by a petitioner Sugran Bibi who had approached Chief Justice Saqib Nisar’s car in Lahore, seeking the top court to listen to her plea. According to her statement, her only son was killed in a “fake encounter” with police when she refused to hand over her home to Azam Butt and his accomplices. Later, Azam Butt got her implicated in a kidnapping for ransom case and she had to serve a 10-month jail term.
