Supreme Court: Only Documents in the Chargesheet to Be Considered for Discharge Applications
In a recent judgment, the Supreme Court clarified that while deciding on an application for discharge, only documents included in the charge sheet may be considered, excluding any that were not part of it.
“In the case of State of Orissa vs. Debendra Nath Padhi (2005) 1 SCC 568, this Court has reiterated the well-settled law that while considering the prayer for discharge, the Trial Court cannot consider any document which is not part of the charge-sheet,” the bench comprising Justice Abhay S. Oka and Justice A.G. Masih observed.
The bench was hearing an appeal filed by the accused, against whom an FIR had been lodged by his wife. The allegations pertained to offences under Sections 498A and 406, read with Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (IPC). The FIR was filed following proceedings initiated by the appellant for the annulment of the marriage.
The annulment decree had been passed ex-parte and was subsequently challenged by the second respondent, the wife. The appellant filed a petition seeking to quash the FIR. However, instead of quashing the FIR, the High Court directed the Trial Court to consider documents related to the decree of nullity and associated appeal, which were not part of the charge sheet.
The Supreme Court deemed the High Court’s directive legally unsustainable. It held that documents unconnected to the charge sheet cannot be considered at the stage of discharge. The Court stated that the decree of nullity and appeal-related documents were irrelevant to the charge sheet and should not have been included in the process of framing charges.
“To say the least, the High Court has committed a gross error by directing the Trial Court to consider the decree of nullity and appeal preferred by the second respondent at the time of framing of charge…Contrary to law laid down by this Court (Debendra Nath Padhi's case), the High Court has directed the Trial Court to consider the documents which are not part of the charge-sheet at the time of framing of charge. Thus, the directions given by the High Court are completely illegal,” the Supreme Court noted.
Consequently, the Court partially allowed the appeal and remanded the matter to the High Court, directing that it be listed before the Roster Bench on December 17, 2024, for further proceedings.
Case Title: RAJNISH KUMAR BISWAKARMA VERSUS STATE OF NCT OF DELHI & ANR.
Date: November-21-2024
Bench: Justice Abhay S. Oka and Justice A.G. Masih
[Read/Download order]
