Inherent powers under Section 482 CrPC do not justify halting cognizable offence investigations or restraining arrest during inquiry.

Section 482 CrPC preserves inherent powers to secure justice in proceedings before the court, but it does not authorise the High Court to stop or quash a police investigation into a cognizable offence merely because the allegations are said to be false, mala fide, or insufficient. Where the FIR discloses a cognizable offence, investigation must proceed; if no offence is disclosed or arrest is alleged to be wrongful, the proper remedy lies under Article 226, not Section 482. The text also rejects restraint on arrest during investigation as an interference with a statutory police function and treats the contrary earlier view as incorrect.

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Issues: (i) Whether the High Court has inherent power under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 to interfere with police investigation into a cognizable offence or to quash such investigation on the ground that no offence is disclosed in the first information report. (ii) Whether the High Court has inherent power under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 to stay or restrain arrest during investigation. (iii) Whether the earlier view upholding quashing or restraint under Section 482 in such circumstances states the correct law.

Issue (i): Whether the High Court has inherent power under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 to interfere with police investigation into a cognizable offence or to quash such investigation on the ground that no offence is disclosed in the first information report.

Analysis: The statutory scheme confers on the police an independent power and duty to investigate cognizable offences. The inherent jurisdiction preserved by Section 482 is not meant to trench upon that field during investigation. The decisions relied upon distinguish between investigation before charge-sheet and proceedings in court after cognizance. Where the first information report discloses a cognizable offence, investigation cannot be stopped under Section 482. If the report discloses no offence, the remedy lies under Article 226, not by invoking inherent power to halt investigation.

Conclusion: The High Court has no inherent power under Section 482 to interfere with police investigation merely because the allegation is said to be false, mala fide, or insufficient, so long as the report discloses a cognizable offence.

Issue (ii): Whether the High Court has inherent power under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 to stay or restrain arrest during investigation.

Analysis: Arrest under Section 41(1)(a) is part of the investigative process in cognizable offences. The Court held that interference with such arrest would amount to interference with a statutory police function. Even if arrest is apprehended to be wrongful or mala fide, the proper remedy is under Article 226 by way of mandamus, not under Section 482 during the pendency of investigation.

Conclusion: The High Court has no inherent power under Section 482 to stay or restrain arrest during investigation.

Issue (iii): Whether the earlier view upholding quashing or restraint under Section 482 in such circumstances states the correct law.

Analysis: The earlier contrary view permitting quashing of the FIR and investigation, or restraint against arrest, even before filing of a charge-sheet, was found inconsistent with the settled law declared by the Privy Council and the Supreme Court on the limited scope of inherent powers during investigation. The Court approved the view that only a writ remedy under Article 226 may be available in appropriate cases of absence of offence or mala fide action.

Conclusion: The contrary earlier view was overruled, and the decision approving absence of inherent power to interfere with investigation and arrest was affirmed as correct.

Final Conclusion: The applications failed because the Court declined to recognize any inherent jurisdiction under Section 482 to stop investigation or arrest at the pre-charge-sheet stage, leaving Article 226 as the proper remedy in appropriate cases.

Ratio Decidendi: Section 482 preserves inherent powers only to secure justice in proceedings before the Court and does not authorize interference with statutory police investigation into cognizable offences or with arrest during such investigation; challenges to mala fide or unauthorized investigative action lie, if at all, under Article 226.

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