CHRI’s ‘Things You Wanted To Ask About the Police But Were Too Afraid To Ask’- 10

Starting October 3, The Morung Express is publishing a series, “101 Things You Wanted To Ask About the Police but Were Too Afraid To Ask,*” an easy guidebook published by the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) on knowing the police better. The questions 54-59 in the series are given below:     Suppose I want to tell the police about a crime, what do I do? If it is a serious crime like theft, housebreaking, eveteasing, assault, molesting a child, rape, kidnapping, trafficking and rioting, you can immediately file an FIR directly with the head of the local police station and they are bound to take it down in writing and give you a copy. You can even go to the magistrate with your complaint and he will register it.     What is an FIR? That is just short form for First Information Report. A victim, witness or any other person knowing about a 'cognisable' offence can file an FIR. What you say in the FIR will start the process whereby the police make inquiries about the matter and gather facts to see if there is a case that can be made out.     Do I have to go only to the local police station or can I file my FIR with any police station? You can file an FIR in any police station. But it is better to go to the local police station in whose jurisdiction the crime occurred because they can swing into action quicker. If you file in any other police station the police are bound to make an entry of the complaint and send it to the concerned police station. They cannot refuse to file your FIR saying that the crime did not happen in their jurisdiction.     Can the police refuse to file my complaint? Yes and no. Crimes in India are divided into those that are 'cognisable' and 'non cognisable'. Examples of a 'cognisable' crime include murder, rape, rioting, and dacoity. These are offences where the police can take notice of them directly, register an FIR and begin to make inquiries.   Examples of a 'non cognisable' crime include cheating, fraud, forgery, bigamy, and creating a public nuisance. These are offences where the investigation will start only when a magistrate has taken the complaint on record and directs the police to investigate. The way of understanding this rough division is that crimes that need a more urgent response can be complained of directly to the police and others go to the magistrate. So, even if the police cannot take your complaint on board they should at the very least listen to you, enter your matter in the daily diary, give you a signed copy of the entry free of cost and direct you to take it to the magistrate.     Suppose my complaint is about a 'cognisable' offence but the station house officer refuses to register it. What can I do?   You can still get it registered by taking the complaint to a senior officer/head of district police or to the nearest judicial magistrate and they will order it to be registered.   To make sure that your complaint is on record and will be followed up, hand deliver the complaint or if you send it by post, register AD it. In any case, always get a receipt that proves that it has been received and keep that safely. That will show that the complaint has been actually received by the concerned officer. That takes care of your complaint but you should also complain about the difficulty you have had in registering your matter in the first place. That way the officer is less likely to do it again.  

(To be contd…) Source: *Written by Navaz Kotwal and Maja Daruwal, the contents of the book are reproduced here with permission. To know more about CHRI visit: http://www.humanrightsinitiative.org