Flooded with complaints about the misuse of powers given to police officers of the rank of Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), who also act as special executive magistrates, under the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), the Bombay High Court has formulated guidelines to be followed by them while prosecutiong citizens for minor offences.

A division bench of Justice Bilal Nazki and Justice FM Reis also directed the state to immediately send all ACPs to its police academy for a crash course in law. The court also asked the state to consider delegating powers either to Judicial Magistrates or officials of the Revenue Department.

The directions came on June 18 while hearing two different writ petitions filed by Pravin Taware, Sunil Chavan and others against special executive magistrates of Pune rural police and Baramati division.

The petitioners had moved the High Court as the magistrates had taken action against them without giving them a hearing and had directed them to execute an interim bond of good behaviour with some conditions. However, in the court it was brought to the notice that one of the petitioners was arrested and sent to jail even when he sought time for complying with the magistrates order. The bench observed that “Magistrates are unaware of law and that they are not trained to act as magistrates”.

The court also raised apprehensions of the law being completely misused in small towns and cities. The bench observed, “These cases come from the cities or bigger towns. This court has not seen a case coming from a remote village. Obviously, the people living in such areas do not find it possible to reach the High Court. Therefore, this court presumes that these powers may be abused with impunity”.

... contd.