Hyderabad: The Delhi High Court’s judgement penalising an Investigating Officer (IO) for delaying the filing of a chargesheet in an accident case has elicited a mixed response from cops in the city.
While some say that it will increase accountability on the part of the IO in speeding up investigations, others believe that given the existing circumstances this judgement could have a negative impact on the conduction of fair investigations.
They say that investigations may be completed in a hurry, and perhaps in an unfair manner, out of fear.
Meanwhile, legal experts welcome the judgement and say that victims will benefit from the expedition of investigations.
The Delhi High Court, while reviewing the reasons for pendency in trial courts, decided to penalise station house officers. It found that cases were not being investigated in time due to indiscipline among the police.
The Court heard an old case in which the victim of an accident was seeking compensation, and found that the IO had not filed a status report. It then ordered the imposition of a fine of Rs 5,000 on the officer. The fine amount will be deducted from his salary and indicated in his service record.
“If this act is repeated, then strict action will be taken,” the HC said.
A senior cop from the city says that this is a good decision as it benefits the victim. “However, given the current shortage of staff in the police department, it is difficult to cope with deadlines. The collection of documentary evidence is a time-consuming process which can lead to delays. That, however, does not mean that an officer can take his own time to file a chargesheet,” he says.
Another senior officer says that such decisions could impact the morale of members of the force and indirectly compel them to speed up investigations by any means.
“The IO may ignore some pieces of evidence or cover them up out of fear of being penalised. This may weaken the case in court,” he says.
A senior advocate at the HC holds a contrasting point of view.
