State of West Bengal Vs. Sudhir Dey
& ANR [1984] INSC 226 (4 December 1984)
MISRA RANGNATH MISRA RANGNATH BHAGWATI, P.N.
SEN, AMARENDRA NATH (J)
CITATION: 1985 AIR 195 1985 SCR (2) 256 1985
SCC (1) 317 1984 SCALE (2)942
CITATOR INFO :
RF 1985 SC 735 (4) RF 1991 SC1260 (42)
ACT:
Constitution of India, 1950-Art. 136-Criminal
special at Leave Petition Judicial interference in police investigation by High
Court by appointing Special officer to inquire into the allegations of an
offence-Special officer already completed his inquiry-Question of law as to
when judicial interference in investigation permissible already decided by
Supreme Court in another case-Whether leave should be granted on the same
point.
HEADNOTE:
The petitioner challenged the order of a
Division Bench of the Calcutta High Court admitting the respondents to bail and
also appointing the Deputy Inspector General, Central Bureau of Investigation
as a Special officer to inquire into the allegations relating to an offence of
murder.
Dismissing the petition,
HELD: (1) A prayer for Special leave in a
bail matter of this type would not ordinarily be entertained by the Supreme
Court. Therefore, counsel for the petitioner rightly does not seek to challenge
the release on bail of the respondents. [254F] (2) In the instant case, the
criminal case itself has in the meantime been quashed by the Calcutta High
Court.
State of West Bengal & Ors. etc. v.
Sampat Lal & ors. [1982] 2 S.C.R. 256. the legal aspects have been
indicated and the principle to be plied to a case of this type has also been
stated. Keeping all these aspects inview and particularly the fact that the
Special officer had made a eport which indicates that the main fabrics of the
allegations are true, Court does not feel inclined to grant leave. The Special
Leave Petition is accordingly dismissed. [255E-E]
CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION Petition For
special Leave to Appeal (Criminal)No 1454/83 From the Judgment and order dated
20.6.83 of the Calcutta High Court in Criminal Misc. Case No. Nil of 1983 under
Sec. 439 of Criminal Procedure Code.
254 Somnath Chatterjee, HK Puri, S. Chosh and
VK Bahl, for the petitioner.
KG Bhagat, Additional Solicitor General, RN
Poddar and Miss Halida Khatoon, for the Union of India.
A.K. Sen, Sib Das Banerjee, Shri Naraian, for
the respondent.
Judgment of the Court was delivered.
RANGANATH MISRA, J. This special leave
application under Article 136 of the Constitution is directed against the order
of a Division Bench of the Calcutta High Court dated June 20,1983, admitting
the respondents to bail and making the following direction:
"Undoubtedly, if the allegations of this
nature are made against the responsible officers of the West Bengal Police, it
will tarnish the image of the entire police force. Under the circumstances we
direct the petitioners to hand over a copy of the petition with its annexures
to the Deputy Inspector General, Central Bureau of Investigation, 13 Lindsay
Street, Calcutta, who will act as a Special officer of this Court and enquire
into the allegation made in this petition and its annexures and submit a report
to this Court as to the truth of the allegation contained therein. This report
must be submitted by 27th June. 1983.
In the meantime we direct the petitioners to
be released forthwith on their executing P.R. Bond of Rs. 250 each." So
far as the question of release on bail of the respondents is concerned,
petitioner's counsel does not seek to challenge it. In fact, a prayer for
special leave in a bail matter of this type would not ordinarily be entertained
in this Court. Challenge, however, is to the other part of the direction
relating to enquiry by the Special officer.
The Special officer appointed in this case by
the High Court has as a fact completed the enquiry and sent his report which
under our direction has been brought here and we had the advantage of perusing
it. The Special officer has found some of the allegations of the respondents to
be true.
255 We have by a separate judgment delivered
today in Criminal No. 570/83, dealt with the enquiry relating to the death of
two teenagers by the names Tirthankar Das Sharma and Sanjib Chatterjee.
Respondent 1, a retired Police Sub- Inspector was engaged as an investigating
officer by the private detective agency-The Secret Eye. Respondent 2 happens to
be the driver of a motor car of the Ananda Bazaar Patrika, a leading newspaper
in Bengali published from Calcutta, which had engaged the private detective
agency for the purpose of investigating into the death of the two teenagers.
One Niranjan Ghosh, Assistant Sub-Inspector of Police attached to the GRP,
Bandel, was concerned at the initial stage of the investigation by the police
into the death of the two boys. on account of certain lacuna in the
investigation of that case Niranjan Ghosh had been put under suspension. At
that stage Niranjan Ghosh and respondent 1 had picked up acquaintance and
respondent 1 had promised to help Niranjan Ghosh in preparing a representation
against his suspension. Lateron some dispute arose between the two which led to
the institution of the criminal proceeding in which bail for respondents became
necessary;
The State of West Bengal filed this
application for leave being aggrieved mainly by the direction for appointment
of a Special officer. By our judgment in the criminal, appeal reference to
which 13 we have made above, the legal aspects have been indicated and the
principle to be applied to a case of this type has also been stated We find
that the criminal case itself has in the meantime been quashed by the Calcutta
High Court. Keeping all these aspects in view and particularly the fact that
the Special officer had made a report which indicates that the main fabrics of
the allegations are true, we do not feel inclined to grant leave. This case
does not require leave to be granted as the question of law has already been
settled by us in the judgment of the criminal appeal and the factual aspects do
not require a review by grant of leave. The application for special leave is
accordingly dismissed.
M.L.A. Petition dismissed.
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