Report No. 79

II. Criminal Appeals

14.2. Appeals to the High Court.-

A criminal appeal lies to the High Court under the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, in a limited number of cases. In the first place,1 any person convicted on a trial held by a Sessions Judge or an Additional Sessions Judge or on a trial held by any other court in which a sentence of imprisonment for more than seven years has been passed, may appeal to the High Court. There are certain statutory limitation2 on the right of appeal, which are not material for our purpose. In the second place,3 State Government may, in any case of conviction on a trial held by any court other than a High Court, direct the Public Prosecutor to present an appeal to the High Court against the sentence on the ground of its inadequacy and, in certain cases, this power of appealing to the High Court can be exercised by the Central Government.

In the third place4 subject to certain limitations, Government may direct the Public Prosecutor to present an appeal to the High Court from an original or appellate order of acquittal passed by any court other than a High Court. This appeal cannot be entertained except with the leave of the High Court5 In the case of an order of acquittal passed in any case instituted upon complaint, the complainant may present an appeal against acquittal to the High Court after obtaining "special leave" of the High Court.6

We need not deal with appeals from orders of criminal courts other than judgments of conviction or acquittal.

1. Section 374(2), Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973; see also para. 14.8, infra.

2. Sections 375 and 376, Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.

3. Section 377, Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.

4. Section 378, Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.

5. Section 378(3), Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.

6. Section 378(4), Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973; see para. 14.10, infra.

14.3. Need for expedition.-

The need for expediting the hearing of criminal appeals his beet emphasised more than once. The High Court Arrears Committee1 presided over by Mr. Justice Shah noted that in some courts, a criminal appeal did not reach hearing for five or six years after the appeal was admitted to the file.

1. High Courts Arrears Committee Report, (1972), p. 75, para. 109.

14.4. Criminal appeals from the Assistant Sessions Judge.-

Measures for expediting the hearing of criminal appeals in the High Courts, as far as we can see, will have to be mostly administrative. We may however, deal with certain matters which need particular attention and in respect of which the law or rules, if necessary, should be amended.

14.5. Summary dismissal of criminal appeal against conviction.-

There has been a tendency in some courts of dismissing first appeal against judgments of conviction in limine a one word order-'dismissed'. Many such orders are reversed on further appeal and the cases are remanded. We are of the view that whenever a first appeal against a judgment of conviction is dismissed in limine, the count of appeal, irrespective of the fact whether it is the High Court:

Court of Session or Chief Judicial Magistrate, should record a brief order, giving reasons as to why it is dismissing the appeal at the preliminary stage. So far as the courts of session and of the Chief Judicial Magistrate are concerned, there already exists1 a provision in the Code that such courts, while dismissing an appeal summarily, should record reasons for doing so.

We have,2 while dealing with regular first appeals against final judgments in civil matters, recommended that not only the subordinate courts [for whom a provision already exists in Order 41, rule 11(4), Code of Civil Procedure, 19081 but also the High Courts, should record a brief order giving reasons which weigh with it in dismissing such appeals at the preliminary hearing. We feel that the need for such an order when a first appeal against a judgment of conviction is being dismissed at a preliminary hearing is all the more great, because a criminal appeal involves the liberty of the subject and has quite often more serious consequences.

1. Section 384(3), Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.

2. Para. 8.14, supra.

14.6. Hearing by single judge of certain appeals against convictions.-

In our view, it is also necessary to enlarge the power of the single judge of High Courts so as to enable a single judge to dispose of all criminal appeals against convictions except those in which a sentence of death or imprisonment for life is passed. We would recommend that the High Courts may revise their rules accordingly, where such is not the position at present.