Understanding Our

Criminal Justice
Chapter 6 System
When we see someone violating the law, we
immediately think of informing the police. You might
have seen, either in real life or in the movies, police
officers filing reports and arresting persons. Because
of the role played by the police in arresting persons,
we often get confused and think that it is the police
who decide whether a person is guilty or not. This,
however, is far from true. After a person is arrested,
it is a court of law that decides whether the accused
person is guilty or not. According to the Constitution,
every individual charged of a crime has to be given a
fair trial.
Do you know what it means to get a fair trial? Have
you heard of an FIR? Or, do you know who a public
prosecutor is? In this chapter, we use a fictional case
of theft to try and highlight the process as well as
the role of different individuals in the criminal justice
system. Most cases go through a process that is
similar to the one discussed in our fictional case.
Therefore, understanding these processes as well as
the role that different persons should play within
the criminal justice system is crucial, so that if ever
the occasion should arise, you are aware of the
processes that should be followed.

I plead not guilty.

And I claim trial.

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18.7.06
At their apartment in Mumbai Mrs Shinde is getting dressed. She has been Hurry up! We are
going to be late for
frantically searching for her gold chain for over an hour. the wedding.

I am sure it was in
this drawer! Where
could it be...?

I can’t find my gold chain - it’s

not in the drawer! I suspect that
Shanti might have stolen it. She
always spends a long time
dusting my room.

Mr Shinde searches Shanti’s trunk and finds an

envelope with Rs.10,000 in it. He screams at Shanti
saying that this is the money she’s got from selling
Shanti Hembram has been working in the house for
the chain.
the past three years.
Saab, my brother and I have been
saving this money over the last
Shanti, have you begun to steal one year. We want to buy a bull
now? And that too my gold chain. when we go to our village.
Bring your trunk - I want to search Madam, I am innocent.
it. We’ve called the police. So if you
have the chain, return it now.
Madam, I haven’t
stolen it.

Mr Shinde has come to the police station. Sub inspector (S.I.) Rao records Mr Shinde’s FIR.

I have come to file an FIR. There has

been a theft in my house. My maid

Po Shanti has stolen my wife’s necklace.

Yes.

67 Chapter 6: Understanding Our Criminal

Justice System
2022-23
 Mr Shinde returns with Sub Inspector Rao. 19.7.06
Sushil, Shanti’s brother arrives and pleads with S.I. Rao to
I will now write the statements release Shanti.
that Mr and Mrs Shinde make She has been arrested for
about this theft. Let me seal the the theft of a gold chain.
envelope that has the money and You can go to court and get
take it with me as evidence. I am a bail order.
arresting Shanti and taking her to
the police station.

But where will I get the money to

Please don’t let him take me! I hire a lawyer? and who will stand as
have not stolen the chain. This surety for her? You have taken all of
is my hard-earned money… our savings and sealed it…

S.I. Rao forcibly keeps Sushil in the police station for two days. Sushil is abused and beaten by S.I. Rao and other
police constables. They try and make him confess that he and his sister Shanti head a gang of domestic servants that
have stolen jewellery from other homes. There have been other complaints of theft of jewellery from Shinde’s
neighbourhood. As Sushil keeps repeating that he is an innocent factory worker, the police let him go after two days.

23.8.06
Although the court granted bail to Shanti after a month, she was unable to get anyone to stand surety for her for
Rs 20,000. She, therefore, continued to be in jail. She is very traumatised. She is worried about what will happen during
the trial.

What will happen to me? I haven’t

done anything wrong and yet I am
behind bars just because Madam
suspects me. And the money that
we’ve been saving... will I ever get it
back…?

14.9.06
The police files a chargesheet in the Magistrate’s Court. The court gives a copy of the chargesheet including
statements of witnesses to Shanti. Shanti tells the court that she has no lawyer to defend her against this false
case of theft.
The Magistrate appoints Advocate Kamla Roy as Shanti’s defence lawyer at the government’s expense.
According to Article 22 of the Constitution, every person has a Fundamental Right to be defended by a
lawyer. Article 39A of the Constitution places a duty upon the State to provide a lawyer to any citizen who
is unable to engage one due to poverty or other disability.

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 11.12.06
Advocate Kamla Roy meets Shanti in the court
The court frames a charge of theft of Mrs Shinde’s gold
chain and possession of money Rs 10,000 got from selling
Here are my case papers.
stolen property against Shanti.
I have been falsely
accused of stealing my
employer’s gold chain. I plead not guilty.
And I claim trial.

They found Rs 10,000 in Shanti’s

trunk and said that this was the
money she got from stealing the
chain. But that is money that we
have been saving up together. The trial before the Magistrate begins…

8.3.07
The Public Prosecutor appears in the case on behalf of the State. He presents Mrs
and Mr Shinde as a key witnesses.

So tell me, Mrs Shinde,

how did the gold chain
go missing? I had kept my chain in the drawer.
Shanti stole it. No other outsider
except Shanti goes into my room.
Mr Shinde searched her trunk in
front of me and we were shocked
to find Rs 10,000 in an envelope.
Shanti got this money from selling
my gold chain. She is a thief.

Next, Advocate Roy cross-examines

the prosecution witness Mrs Shinde.

So, what you are basically saying is

that you did not see Shanti steal the
chain. Nor did you recover the chain
on Shanti. Also, in the three years that
she has worked for you, nothing has
been stolen from the house. You were
also regularly paying her
Rs 1,000 as salary each month.

20.4.07
Advocate Roy examines Sushil and his
employer as defence witnesses. Through
their testimonies, she is able to show that the
Rs 10,000 found in Shanti’s trunk could well
be the earnings of Sushil and Shanti.

69 Chapter 6: Understanding Our Criminal

Justice System
2022-23
14.5.07
As the trial is nearing completion, Sushil learns that
Inspector Sharma has busted a gang of young men who
have been stealing jewellery from the Shinde’s
neighbourhood. Some of Mrs Shinde’s son’s friends are 15.7.07
part of this gang. Mrs Shinde’s chain has been found on The judge hears the testimony of all the witnesses. After
them. Sushil tells Advocate Roy about this. Advocate Roy the testimony of Inspector Sharma, Advocate Roy argues
now calls Inspector Sharma as a defence witness. before the judge that it has now been established that
Inspector Sharma, can Shanti is innocent and should be acquitted.
you show and tell us
what you’ve found?
Shanti, you are hereby acquitted of the charge of
theft. The police will hand over to you the
Rs 10,000 that they had sealed. In my written
judgment, I have made it a point to highlight S.I. Rao’s
role in conducting such a shoddy investigation that
made you spend time in jail.

Here is the chain that has been

identified by Mrs Shinde as hers. We
busted a gang of boys who had stolen
the chain. These boys have admitted
that they stole the chain.

          
         


         

What is the Role of the Police in

Investigating a Crime?
         
       

         
        
           



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


            
           
       
         
        

         



        


•  Why do you think there is a
 rule that confessions made
during police custody cannot
•           be used as evidence against
   the accused?
•           
  
•         

• 
      

The Supreme Court of India has laid down specific requirements and procedures that the police and
other agencies have to follow for the arrest, detention and interrogation of any person. These are
known as the D.K. Basu Guidelines and some of these include:
• The police officials who carry out the arrest or interrogation should wear clear, accurate and visible
identification and name tags with their designations;
• A memo of arrest should be prepared at the time of arrest and should include the time and date of
arrest. It should also be attested by at least one witness who could include a family member of the
person arrested. The arrest memo should be counter-signed by the person arrested.
• The person arrested, detained or being interrogated has a right to inform a relative, friend or well-
wisher.
• When a friend or relative lives outside the district, the time, place of arrest and venue of custody
must be notified by police within 8 to 12 hours after arrest.

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1. Now let us return to the story of Shanti and answer the following questions:
a) When Shanti was arrested for theft, S.I. Rao also kept her brother Sushil in the


police lock up for two days. Was it legal for the police to detain him? Does it
violate the D.K. Basu guidelines?
b) Did S.I. Rao do enough to question witnesses and compile evidence before
arresting Shanti and filing a case against her? In keeping with the duties of the
police as stated above, what else do you think S.I. Rao could have done as part of
his investigation?
2. Now let us take a slightly different scenario. Shanti and her brother Sushil go to the
police station to complain that Mr Shinde’s 20-year old son had stolen Rs 15,000 that
they had been saving up. Do you think that the officer in charge of the Police Station
will promptly lodge an FIR? List a few factors that in your opinion may influence the
decision of the police to register or not register an FIR.

First Information Report (FIR):

It is with the registration of an FIR that the police can

begin their investigations into a crime. The law states
that it is compulsory for an officer in charge of a police
station to register an FIR whenever a person gives
information about a cognizable offence. This
information can be given to the police either orally or
in writing. The FIR usually mentions the date, time and
place of the offence, details the basic facts of the
offence, including a description of the events. If known,
the identity of the accused persons and witnesses is
also mentioned. The FIR also states the name and
address of the complainant. There is a prescribed form
in which the police registers an FIR and it is signed by
the complainant. The complainant also has a legal right
to get a free copy of the FIR from the police.

Social and Political Life 72

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What is the Role of the Public Prosecutor?
          

So tell me, Mrs Shinde,
 how did the gold chain
           go missing?


        
           
      



         

         I had kept my chain in the drawer.
 Shanti stole it. No other outsider
except Shanti goes into my room. Mr
 Shinde searched her trunk in front of
me and we were shocked to find Rs
 10,000 in an envelope. Shanti got
 this money from selling my gold
chain. She is a thief.



What is the Role of the Judge?


          
       

          
         

            
      What did the judge say in
Shanti’s case after hearing the
What is a Fair Trial? testimony of all the witnesses?

      

       
           

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 Here are my case papers. I
have been falsely accused
of stealing my employer’s
          
gold chain.          
         

         

             

         
They found Rs10,000 in Shanti’s trunk and           
said that this was the money she got from           
stealing the chain. But that is money that
we have been saving up together.          
          


          
       


        


        
      
So what you are basically

saying is that you did not
see Shanti steal the 
chain. Nor did you recover
the chain on Shanti. Also, 
in the three years that
she has worked for you,
       
nothing has been stolen 
from the house. You were
also regularly paying her

Rs 1,000 as salary each
month. 
 

        
        


 

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

           


           

          


All of the processes, written in bold on page 74, are crucial to a fair trial. Write in your


own words what you understand of the following processes based on the above description
of Shanti’s case.
a. Open Court:
b. Basis of Evidence:
c. Cross-examination of Prosecution Witnesses:
Discuss in class what might have happened in Shanti’s case if the following procedures
had not been observed.
a. If she were not defended by a lawyer.
b. If the court had not assumed her to be innocent.

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 Exercises
In a town called Peace Land, the supporters of the Fiesta football team learn that the supporters of
the Jubilee football team in the nearby city about 40 km away have damaged the ground on which
the Final between both teams is to be held the following day. A crowd of Fiesta fans armed with
deadly weapons attacks the homes of the supporters of the Jubilee football team in the town. In the
attack, 10 men are killed, 5 women are gravely hurt, many homes are destroyed and over 50 people
injured.

Imagine that you and your classmates are now part of the criminal justice system. First divide the
class into the following four groups of persons:

1. Police 2. Public Prosecutor 3. Defence lawyer 4. Judge

The column on the right provides a list of functions. Match these with the roles that are listed on the
left. Have each group pick the functions that it needs to perform to bring justice to those who were
affected by the violence of the Fiesta fans. In what order, will these functions be performed?

Roles Functions
Police hear the witnesses
record the statements of witnesses
Public Prosecutor cross examine the witnesses
take photographs of burnt homes
Defence Lawyer record the evidence
arrest the Fiesta fans
Judge writes the judgment
argue the case for the victims
decide for how many years the accused will be put in jail
examine the witnesses in court
pass the judgment
get the assaulted women medically examined
conduct a fair trial
meet the accused persons

Now take the same situation but ask one student who is a supporter of the Fiesta Club to perform all
the functions listed above. Do you think the victims would get justice if only one person performed
all of the functions of the criminal justice system? Why not?

State two reasons why you believe that different persons need to play different roles as part of the
criminal justice system.

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 GLOSSARY

Accused: In the context of this chapter this refers to the person who is tried by a court
for a crime.
Cognizable: In the context of this chapter this refers to an offence for which the police
may arrest a person without the permission of the court.
Cross-examine: In the context of this chapter this refers to the questioning of a
witness who has already been examined by the opposing side in order to determine the
veracity of his/her testimony.
Detention: In the context of this chapter this refers to the act of being kept in illegal
custody by the police.
Impartial: The act of being fair or just and not favouring one side over another.
Offence: Any act that the law defines as a crime.
To be charged of a crime: This refers to the trial judge informing the accused, in
writing, of the offence for which he/she will face trial.
Witness: In the context of this chapter this refers to the person who is called upon in
court to provide a first-hand account of what he/she has seen, heard or knows.

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