TMI Blog2014 (1) TMI 1819X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ing investigation or the word evidence is limited to the evidence recorded during trial? Held that:- Section 319 Cr.P.C., significantly, uses two expressions that have to be taken note of i.e. (1) Inquiry (2) Trial. As a trial commences after framing of charge, an inquiry can only be understood to be a pre-trial inquiry. Inquiries under Sections 200, 201, 202 Cr.P.C.; and under Section 398 Cr.P.C. are species of the inquiry contemplated by Section 319 Cr.P.C. Materials coming before the Court in course of such enquiries can be used for corroboration of the evidence recorded in the court after the trial commences, for the exercise of power under Section 319 Cr.P.C., and also to add an accused whose name has been shown in Column 2 of the chargesheet. In view of the above position the word 'evidence' in Section 319 Cr.P.C. has to be broadly understood and not literally i.e. as evidence brought during a trial. Whether the word evidence used in Section 319(1) Cr.P.C. could only mean evidence tested by cross-examination or the court can exercise the power under the said provision even on the basis of the statement made in the examination-in-chief of the witness concerne ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... na Prakash Desai, Ranjan Gogoi, Sharad Arvind Bobde, JJ. JUDGMENT Dr. B. S. Chauhan, J. 1. This reference before us arises out of a variety of views having been expressed by this Court and several High Courts of the country on the scope and extent of the powers of the courts under the criminal justice system to arraign any person as an accused during the course of inquiry or trial as contemplated under Section 319 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (hereinafter referred to as the Cr.P.C. ). 2. The initial reference was made by a two-Judge Bench vide order dated 7.11.2008 in the leading case of Hardeep Singh (Crl. Appeal No. 1750 of 2008) where noticing the conflict between the judgments in the case of Rakesh v. State of Haryana, AIR 2001 SC 2521; and a two- Judge Bench decision in the case of Mohd. Shafi v. Mohd. Rafiq Anr., AIR 2007 SC 1899, a doubt was expressed about the correctness of the view in the case of Mohd. Shafi (Supra). The doubts as categorised in paragraphs 75 and 78 of the reference order led to the framing of two questions by the said Bench which are reproduced hereunder: (1) When the power under sub-section (1) of Section 319 of the C ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ovision even on the basis of the statement made in the examination-in-chief of the witness concerned? (iii) Whether the word evidence used in Section 319(1) Cr.P.C. has been used in a comprehensive sense and includes the evidence collected during investigation or the word evidence is limited to the evidence recorded during trial? (iv) What is the nature of the satisfaction required to invoke the power under Section 319 Cr.P.C. to arraign an accused? Whether the power under Section 319(1) Cr.P.C. can be exercised only if the court is satisfied that the accused summoned will in all likelihood convicted? (v) Does the power under Section 319 Cr.P.C. extend to persons not named in the FIR or named in the FIR but not charged or who have been discharged? 6. In this reference what we are primarily concerned with, is the stage at which such powers can be invoked and, secondly, the material on the basis whereof the invoking of such powers can be justified. To add as a corollary to the same, thirdly, the manner in which such power has to be exercised, also has to be considered. 7. The Constitutional mandate under Articles 20 and 21 of the Constitution of India, 1950 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ode, 1898 (hereinafter referred to as Old Code ), where an analogous provision existed, empowering the court to summon any person other than the accused if he is found to be connected with the commission of the offence. However, when the new Cr.P.C. was being drafted, regard was had to 41st Report of the Law Commission where in the paragraphs 24.80 and 24.81 recommendations were made to make this provision more comprehensive. The said recommendations read: 24.80 It happens sometimes, though not very often, that a Magistrate hearing a case against certain accused finds from the evidence that some person, other than the accused before him, is also concerned in that very offence or in a connected offence. It is proper that Magistrate should have the power to call and join him in proceedings. Section 351 provides for such a situation, but only if that person happens to be attending the Court. He can then be detained and proceeded against. There is no express provision in Section 351 for summoning such a person if he is not present in court. Such a provision would make Section 351 fairly comprehensive, and we think it proper to expressly provide for that situation. 24.81 Sect ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... son shall be commenced afresh, and the witnesses re-heard; (b) subject to the provisions of clause (a), the case may proceed as if such person had been an accused person when the Court took cognizance of the offence upon which the inquiry or trial was commenced. 12. Section 319 Cr.P.C. springs out of the doctrine judex damnatur cum nocens absolvitur (Judge is condemned when guilty is acquitted) and this doctrine must be used as a beacon light while explaining the ambit and the spirit underlying the enactment of Section 319 Cr.P.C. It is the duty of the Court to do justice by punishing the real culprit. Where the investigating agency for any reason does not array one of the real culprits as an accused, the court is not powerless in calling the said accused to face trial. The question remains under what circumstances and at what stage should the court exercise its power as contemplated in Section 319 Cr.P.C.? The submissions that were raised before us covered a very wide canvas and the learned counsel have taken us through various provisions of Cr.P.C. and the judgments that have been relied on for the said purpose. The controversy centers around the stage at which su ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... to proceed against any person who is not an accused in a case before it. Thus, the person against whom summons are issued in exercise of such powers, has to necessarily not be an accused already facing trial. He can either be a person named in Column 2 of the chargesheet filed under Section 173 Cr.P.C. or a person whose name has been disclosed in any material before the court that is to be considered for the purpose of trying the offence, but not investigated. He has to be a person whose complicity may be indicated and connected with the commission of the offence. 16. The legislature cannot be presumed to have imagined all the circumstances and, therefore, it is the duty of the court to give full effect to the words used by the legislature so as to encompass any situation which the court may have to tackle while proceeding to try an offence and not allow a person who deserves to be tried to go scot free by being not arraigned in the trial in spite of possibility of his complicity which can be gathered from the documents presented by the prosecution. 17. The court is the sole repository of justice and a duty is cast upon it to uphold the rule of law and, therefore, it will be ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... held that even if Section 319 Cr.P.C. could not be invoked at that stage, Section 193 Cr.P.C. could be invoked for the said purpose. We are not delving into the said issue which had been answered by the five-Judge Bench of this Court. However, we may clarify that the opening words of Section 193 Cr.P.C. categorically recite that the power of the Court of Sessions to take cognizance would commence only after committal of the case by a magistrate. The said provision opens with a non-obstante clause except as otherwise expressly provided by this code or by any other law for the time being in force . The Section therefore is clarified by the said opening words which clearly means that if there is any other provision under Cr.P.C., expressly making a provision for exercise of powers by the court to take cognizance, then the same would apply and the provisions of Section 193 Cr.P.C. would not be applicable. 20. In our opinion, Section 319 Cr.P.C. is an enabling provision empowering the court to take appropriate steps for proceeding against any person not being an accused for also having committed the offence under trial. It is this part which is under reference before this Court and ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ling of the charge-sheet and the consideration of the material collected by the prosecution, that is mentioned in the charge-sheet for the purpose of trying the accused. This has to be understood in terms of Section 2(g) Cr.P.C., which defines an inquiry as follows: 2(g) inquiry means every inquiry, other than a trial, conducted under this Code by a Magistrate or Court. 26. In State of U.P. v. Lakshmi Brahman Anr., AIR 1983 SC 439, this Court held that from the stage of filing of charge-sheet to ensuring the compliance of provision of Section 207 Cr.P.C., the court is only at the stage of inquiry and no trial can be said to have commenced. The above view has been held to be per incurium in Raj Kishore Prasad v. State of Bihar Anr., AIR 1996 SC 1931, wherein this Court while observing that Section 319 (1) Cr.P.C. operates in an ongoing inquiry into, or trial of, an offence, held that at the stage of Section 209 Cr.P.C., the court is neither at the stage of inquiry nor at the stage of trial. Even at the stage of ensuring compliance of Sections 207 and 208 Cr.P.C., it cannot be said that the court is at the stage of inquiry because there is no judicial application of m ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ling with the proceedings in General Court Martial under the provisions of the Army Act 1950, applied legal maxim nullus commodum capere potest de injuria sua propria (no one can take advantage of his own wrong), and referred to various dictionary meanings of the word trial and came to the conclusion: It would, therefore, be clear that trial means act of proving or judicial examination or determination of the issues including its own jurisdiction or authority in accordance with law or adjudging guilt or innocence of the accused including all steps necessary thereto. The trial commences with the performance of the first act or steps necessary or essential to proceed with the trial. (Emphasis supplied) X X X X Our conclusion further gets fortified by the scheme of the trial of a criminal case under the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, viz., Chapter XIV Conditions requisite for initiation of proceedings containing Sections 190 to 210, Chapter XVIII containing Sections 225 to 235 and dealing with trial before a Court of Sessions pursuant to committal order under Section 209 and in Chapter XIX trial of warrant cases by Magistrates containing Sections 238 t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... lingam, (1914) I.L.R. 38 Mad. 585. 34. However, the Bombay High Court in Dagdu Govindshet Wani v. Punja Vedu Wani (1936) 38 Bom.L.R. 1189 referring to Sriramulu (Supra) held : There is no doubt that the Court did take the view that in a warrant case the trial only commences from the framing of the charge ..But, according to my experience of the administration of criminal justice in this Presidency, which is not inconsiderable, the Courts here have always accepted the definition of trial which has been given in Gomer Sirda v. Queen-Empress, (1898) I.L.R. 25 Cal. 863, that is to say, trial has always been understood to mean the proceeding which commences when the case is called on with the Magistrate on the Bench, the accused in the dock and the representatives of the prosecution and, defence, if the accused be defended, present in Court for the hearing of the case. A similar view has been taken by the Lahore High Court in Sahib Din v. The Crown, (1922) I.L.R. 3 Lah. 115, wherein it was held that for the purposes of Section 350 of the Code, a trial cannot be said to commence only when a charge is framed. The trial covers the whole of the proceedings in a warrant case. T ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... place to another with reference to period of time when the movement is in progress. (See: State of Travancore-Cochin Ors. v. Shanmugha Vilas Cashewnut Factory, Quilon, AIR 1953 SC 333). 39. To say that powers under Section 319 Cr.P.C. can be exercised only during trial would be reducing the impact of the word inquiry by the court. It is a settled principle of law that an interpretation which leads to the conclusion that a word used by the legislature is redundant, should be avoided as the presumption is that the legislature has deliberately and consciously used the words for carrying out the purpose of the Act. The legal maxim A Verbis Legis Non Est Recedendum which means, from the words of law, there must be no departure has to be kept in mind. 40. The court cannot proceed with an assumption that the legislature enacting the statute has committed a mistake and where the language of the statute is plain and unambiguous, the court cannot go behind the language of the statute so as to add or subtract a word playing the role of a political reformer or of a wise counsel to the legislature. The court has to proceed on the footing that the legislature intended what it has s ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ommitted a mistake; it must proceed on the footing that the legislature intended what it has said; even if there is some defect in the phraseology used by it in framing the statute, and it is not open to the court to add and amend, or by construction, make up for the deficiencies, which have been left in the Act The Statute is not to be construed in light of certain notions that the legislature might have had in mind, or what the legislature is expected to have said, or what the legislature might have done, or what the duty of the legislature to have said or done was. The Courts have to administer the law as they find it, and it is not permissible for the Court to twist the clear language of the enactment, in order to avoid any real, or imaginary hardship which such literal interpretation may cause .under the garb of interpreting the provision, the Court does not have the power to add or subtract even a single word, as it would not amount to interpretation, but legislation. Thus, by no means it can be said that provisions of Section 319 Cr.P.C. cannot be pressed into service during the course of inquiry . The word inquiry is not surpulsage in the said provision. 43. Si ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... y other stage when the court is empowered to add any other person to the array of the accused is after reaching evidence collection when powers under Section 319 of the Code can be invoked 47. In Kishun Singh (Supra), the Court while considering the provision of the old Code, the Law Commission s Recommendation and the provisions in the Cr.P.C., held that Section 319 Cr.P.C. is an improved provision upon the earlier one. It has removed the difficulty of taking cognizance as cognizance against the added person would be deemed to have been taken as originally against the other co-accused. Therefore, on Magistrate committing the case under Section 209 Cr.P.C. to the Court of Sessions, the bar of Section 193 Cr.P.C. gets lifted thereby investing the Court of Sessions complete and unfettered jurisdiction of the court of original jurisdiction to take cognizance of the offence which would include the summoning of the person or persons whose complicity in the commission of the crime can prima facie be gathered from the material available on record, though who is not an accused before the court. 48. In Dharam Pal (CB), the Constitution Bench approved the decision in Kishun Singh (Su ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... xcluded by the prosecuting agencies. This is all the more necessary in order to ensure that the investigating and the prosecuting agencies have acted fairly in bringing before the court those persons who deserve to be tried and to prevent any person from being deliberately shielded when they ought to have been tried. This is necessary to usher faith in the judicial system whereby the court should be empowered to exercise such powers even at the stage of inquiry and it is for this reason that the legislature has consciously used separate terms, namely, inquiry or trial in Section 319 Cr.P.C. Accordingly, we hold that the court can exercise the power under Section 319 Cr.P.C. only after the trial proceeds and commences with the recording of the evidence and also in exceptional circumstances as explained herein above. 51. There is yet another set of provisions which form part of inquiry relevant for the purposes of Section 319 Cr.P.C. i.e. provisions of Sections 200, 201, 202, etc. Cr.P.C. applicable in the case of Complaint Cases. As has been discussed herein, evidence means evidence adduced before the court. Complaint Cases is a distinct category of criminal trial where some s ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e issue has to be investigated by examining the circumstances which give rise to a situation for the court to invoke such powers. The circumstances that lead to such inference being drawn up by the court for summoning a person arise out of the availability of the facts and material that comes up before the court and are made the basis for summoning such a person as an accomplice to the offence alleged to have been committed. The material should disclose the complicity of the person in the commission of the offence which has to be the material that appears from the evidence during the course of any inquiry into or trial of offence. The words as used in Section 319 Cr.P.C. indicate that the material has to be where .it appears from the evidence before the court. 55. Before we answer this issue, let us examine the meaning of the word evidence . According to Section 3 of the Evidence Act, evidence means and includes: (1) all statements which the Court permits or requires to be made before it by witnesses, in relation to matters of fact under inquiry; such statements are called oral evidence; (2) all documents including electronic records produced for the inspection of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... anner which may add something to the meaning of the word which ordinarily does not so mean by the definition itself, more particularly, where it is a restrictive definition. Unless there are compelling reasons to do so, meaning of a restrictive and exhaustive definition would not be expanded or made extensive to embrace things which are strictly not within the meaning of the word as defined. We, therefore proceed to examine the matter further on the premise that the definition of word evidence under the Evidence Act is exhaustive. 59. In Kalyan Kumar Gogoi v. Ashutosh Agnihotri Anr., AIR 2011 SC 760, while dealing with the issue this Court held : 18. The word evidence is used in common parlance in three different senses: (a) as equivalent to relevant, (b) as equivalent to proof, and (c) as equivalent to the material, on the basis of which courts come to a conclusion about the existence or non-existence of disputed facts. Though, in the definition of the word evidence given in Section 3 of the Evidence Act one finds only oral and documentary evidence, this word is also used in phrases such as best evidence, circumstantial evidence, corroborative evidence, deriva ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... and documents produced for the inspection of the Court. There is no restriction in this definition to documents which are duly proved by evidence. (Emphasis added) 63. Similarly, this Court in Sunil Mehta Anr. v. State of Gujarat Anr., JT 2013 (3) SC 328, held that It is trite that evidence within the meaning of the Evidence Act and so also within the meaning of Section 244 of the Cr.P.C. is what is recorded in the manner stipulated under Section 138 in the case of oral evidence. Documentary evidence would similarly be evidence only if the documents are proved in the manner recognised and provided for under the Evidence Act unless of course a statutory provision makes the document admissible as evidence without any formal proof thereof. 64. In Guriya @ Tabassum Tauquir Ors. v. State of Bihar Anr., AIR 2008 SC 95, this Court held that in exercise of the powers under Section 319 Cr.P.C., the court can add a new accused only on the basis of evidence adduced before it and not on the basis of materials available in the charge sheet or the case diary. 65. In Kishun Singh (Supra), this Court held : 11. On a plain reading of sub-section (1) of Section 319 there ca ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... under Section 319 Cr.P.C. on the basis of materials available in the charge-sheet or the case diary, because such materials contained in the charge-sheet or the case diary do not constitute evidence. The word evidence in Section 319 Cr.P.C. contemplates the evidence of witnesses given in the court. 69. Ordinarily, it is only after the charges are framed that the stage of recording of evidence is reached. A bare perusal of Section 227 Cr.P.C. would show that the legislature has used the terms record of the case and the documents submitted therewith . It is in this context that the word evidence as appearing in Section 319 Cr.P.C. has to be read and understood. The material collected at the stage of investigation can at best be used for a limited purpose as provided under Section 157 of the Evidence Act i.e. to corroborate or contradict the statements of the witnesses recorded before the court. Therefore, for the exercise of power under Section 319 Cr.P.C., the use of word evidence means material that has come before the court during an inquiry or trial by it and not otherwise. If from the evidence led in the trial the court is of the opinion that a person not accused be ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... t during inquiry itself, as a prima facie satisfaction for exercising the powers as presently involved. 76. This pre-trial stage is a stage where no adjudication on the evidence of the offences involved takes place and therefore, after the material alongwith the charge-sheet has been brought before the court, the same can be inquired into in order to effectively proceed with framing of charges. After the charges are framed, the prosecution is asked to lead evidence and till that is done, there is no evidence available in the strict legal sense of Section 3 of the Evidence Act. The actual trial of the offence by bringing the accused before the court has still not begun. What is available is the material that has been submitted before the court along with the charge-sheet. In such situation, the court only has the preparatory material that has been placed before the court for its consideration in order to proceed with the trial by framing of charges. 77. It is, therefore, not any material that can be utilised, rather it is that material after cognizance is taken by a court, that is available to it while making an inquiry into or trying an offence, that the court can utilize or ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s, therefore, is evidence which includes the statement during examination-in-chief. In Rakesh (Supra), it was held that It is true that finally at the time of trial the accused is to be given an opportunity to cross-examine the witness to test its truthfulness. But that stage would not arise while exercising the court s power under Section 319 CrPC. Once the deposition is recorded, no doubt there being no cross-examination, it would be a prima facie material which would enable the Sessions Court to decide whether powers under Section 319 should be exercised or not. In Ranjit Singh (Supra), this Court held that it is not necessary for the court to wait until the entire evidence is collected, for exercising the said power. In Mohd. Shafi (Supra), it was held that the pre-requisite for exercise of power under Section 319 Cr.P.C. was the satisfaction of the court to proceed against a person who is not an accused but against whom evidence occurs, for which the court can even wait till the cross examination is over and that there would be no illegality in doing so. A similar view has been taken by a two-Judge Bench in the case of Harbhajan Singh Anr. v. State of Punjab Anr. (2009 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ghts including the right to cross examine prosecution witnesses and examine defence witnesses and advance his arguments upon the same. Therefore, even on the basis of Examination- in-Chief, the Court or the Magistrate can proceed against a person as long as the court is satisfied that the evidence appearing against such person is such that it prima facie necessitates bringing such person to face trial. In fact, Examination-in-Chief untested by Cross Examination, undoubtedly in itself, is an evidence. 84. Further, in our opinion, there does not seem to be any logic behind waiting till the cross-examination of the witness is over. It is to be kept in mind that at the time of exercise of power under Section 319 Cr.P.C., the person sought to be arraigned as an accused, is in no way participating in the trial. Even if the cross-examination is to be taken into consideration, the person sought to be arraigned as an accused cannot cross examine the witness(s) prior to passing of an order under Section 319 Cr.P.C., as such a procedure is not contemplated by the Cr.P.C. Secondly, invariably the State would not oppose or object to naming of more persons as an accused as it would only help ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... . State of Rajasthan, 2013 (11) SCALE 23, held that on the objective satisfaction of the court a person may be 'arrested' or 'summoned', as the circumstances of the case may require, if it appears from the evidence that any such person not being the accused has committed an offence for which such person could be tried together with the already arraigned accused persons. 89. In Rajendra Singh (Supra), the Court observed: Be it noted, the court need not be satisfied that he has committed an offence. It need only appear to it that he has committed an offence. In other words, from the evidence it need only appear to it that someone else has committed an offence, to exercise jurisdiction under Section 319 of the Code. Even then, it has a discretion not to proceed, since the expression used is may and not shall . The legislature apparently wanted to leave that discretion to the trial court so as to enable it to exercise its jurisdiction under this section. The expression appears indicates an application of mind by the court to the evidence that has come before it and then taking a decision to proceed under Section 319 of the Code or not. 90. In Mohd. Sha ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... istently held that the court at the stage of framing of the charge has to apply its mind to the question whether or not there is any ground for presuming the commission of an offence by the accused. The court has to see as to whether the material brought on record reasonably connect the accused with the offence. Nothing more is required to be enquired into. While dealing with the aforesaid provisions, the test of prima facie case is to be applied. The Court has to find out whether the materials offered by the prosecution to be adduced as evidence are sufficient for the court to proceed against the accused further. (Vide: State of Karnataka v. L. Munishwamy Ors., AIR 1977 SC 1489; All India Bank Officers' Confederation etc. v. Union of India Ors., AIR 1989 SC 2045; Stree Atyachar Virodhi Parishad v. Dilip Nathumal Chordia, (1989) 1 SCC 715; State of M.P. v. Dr. Krishna Chandra Saksena, (1996) 11 SCC 439; and State of M.P. v. Mohan Lal Soni, AIR 2000 SC 2583). 94. In Dilawar Babu Kurane v. State of Maharashtra, AIR 2002 SC 564, this Court while dealing with the provisions of Sections 227 and 228 Cr.P.C., placed a very heavy reliance on the earlier judgment of this Court ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ceeding with the trial .. 97. In Palanisamy Gounder Anr. v. State, represented by Inspector of Police, (2005) 12 SCC 327, this Court deprecated the practice of invoking the power under Section 319 Cr.P.C. just to conduct a fishing inquiry, as in that case, the trial court exercised that power just to find out the real truth, though there was no valid ground to proceed against the person summoned by the court. 98. Power under Section 319 Cr.P.C. is a discretionary and an extra- ordinary power. It is to be exercised sparingly and only in those cases where the circumstances of the case so warrant. It is not to be exercised because the Magistrate or the Sessions Judge is of the opinion that some other person may also be guilty of committing that offence. Only where strong and cogent evidence occurs against a person from the evidence led before the court that such power should be exercised and not in a casual and cavalier manner. 99. Thus, we hold that though only a prima facie case is to be established from the evidence led before the court not necessarily tested on the anvil of Cross-Examination, it requires much stronger evidence than mere probability of his complicity. ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n from which it can be inferred that a person who is named in the FIR or complaint, but against whom charge- sheet is not filed by the police, cannot be proceeded against even though in the course of any inquiry into or trial of any offence, the court finds that such person has committed an offence for which he could be tried together with the other accused. In Lal Suraj (supra), a two-Judge Bench held that there is no dispute with the legal proposition that even if a person had not been charge-sheeted, he may come within the purview of the description of such a person as contained in Section 319 Cr.P.C. A similar view had been taken in Lok Ram (Supra), wherein it was held that a person, though had initially been named in the FIR as an accused, but not charge-sheeted, can also be added to face the trial. 103. Even the Constitution Bench in Dharam Pal (CB) has held that the Sessions Court can also exercise its original jurisdiction and summon a person as an accused in case his name appears in Column 2 of the chargesheet, once the case had been committed to it. It means that a person whose name does not appear even in the FIR or in the chargesheet or whose name appears in the FIR ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... m along with the other accused. 107. Power under Section 398 Cr.P.C. is in the nature of revisional power which can be exercised only by the High Court or the Sessions Judge, as the case may be. According to Section 300 (5) Cr.P.C., a person discharged under Section 258 Cr.P.C. shall not be tried again for the same offence except with the consent of the Court by which he was discharged or of any other Court to which the first-mentioned Court is subordinate. Further, Section 398 Cr.P.C. provides that the High Court or the Sessions Judge may direct the Chief Judicial Magistrate by himself or by any of the Magistrate subordinate to him to make an inquiry into the case against any person who has already been discharged. 108. Both these provisions contemplate an inquiry to be conducted before any person, who has already been discharged, is asked to again face trial if some evidence appears against him. As held earlier, Section 319 Cr.P.C. can also be invoked at the stage of inquiry. We do not see any reason why inquiry as contemplated by Section 300(5) Cr.P.C. and Section 398 Cr.P.C. cannot be an inquiry under Section 319 Cr.P.C. Accordingly, a person discharged can also be arraig ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... also to add an accused whose name has been shown in Column 2 of the chargesheet. In view of the above position the word 'evidence' in Section 319 Cr.P.C. has to be broadly understood and not literally i.e. as evidence brought during a trial. Question No. II Q.II Whether the word evidence used in Section 319(1) Cr.P.C. could only mean evidence tested by cross-examination or the court can exercise the power under the said provision even on the basis of the statement made in the examination-in-chief of the witness concerned? A. Considering the fact that under Section 319 Cr.P.C. a person against whom material is disclosed is only summoned to face the trial and in such an event under Section 319(4) Cr.P.C. the proceeding against such person is to commence from the stage of taking of cognizance, the Court need not wait for the evidence against the accused proposed to be summoned to be tested by cross-examination. Question No. IV Q.IV What is the nature of the satisfaction required to invoke the power under Section 319 Cr.P.C. to arraign an accused? Whether the power under Section 319 (1) Cr.P.C. can be exercised only if the court is satisfied that the accused ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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