Supervised inspection of unrelied seized documents may be allowed at the Section 207 stage to protect fair trial rights.

At the Section 207 stage, accused persons may be allowed supervised inspection of seized materials not relied upon by the prosecution, including documents kept in the CBI malkhana, where controlled access is necessary for a fair trial. The Court held that such inspection does not require indiscriminate production and may be confined by safeguards, including exclusion of materials connected with pending investigation. It further held that the trial court's order did not prejudice further investigation and could stand, with relevance and sterling quality to be considered later at charge.

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Issues: (i) Whether, at the stage of compliance with Section 207 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, the accused could be permitted inspection of documents seized or collected during investigation but not relied upon by the prosecution and kept in the CBI malkhana. (ii) Whether the order permitting inspection was liable to be set aside on the ground that it would prejudice further investigation or that the accused had no right to seek such access before the stage of charge.

Issue (i): Whether, at the stage of compliance with Section 207 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, the accused could be permitted inspection of documents seized or collected during investigation but not relied upon by the prosecution and kept in the CBI malkhana.

Analysis: The scheme of Sections 207 and 208 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, read with the Supreme Court's directions on criminal trial deficiencies, requires that the accused not be kept in the dark about materials seized during investigation but not relied upon by the prosecution. The Court noted that such disclosure is necessary so that the accused may seek appropriate orders for production of those materials during trial if they are needed for a proper and just adjudication. The impugned order did not require the unrelied materials to be produced indiscriminately; it only permitted supervised inspection in the CBI malkhana under controlled conditions. The Court also relied on the CBI (Crime) Manual, 2020, which recognizes a procedure for such inspection.

Conclusion: The accused could be permitted supervised inspection of unrelied materials lying in the CBI malkhana at the Section 207 stage, subject to the safeguards imposed by the trial court.

Issue (ii): Whether the order permitting inspection was liable to be set aside on the ground that it would prejudice further investigation or that the accused had no right to seek such access before the stage of charge.

Analysis: The Court distinguished the authorities relied upon by the petitioner and held that the present matter was not one where the accused sought to introduce its own material at the stage of charge. The concern of prejudice to further investigation was addressed by the trial court's express limitation that inspection would not cover documents in relation to which investigation was still pending. The Court further held that where the prosecution had already filed the charge-sheet, the apprehension that every document might be needed for future investigation was not sufficient to negate the accused's right to supervised inspection of seized but unrelied materials. The Court also accepted that the trial court had preserved the question of relevance and sterling quality for later consideration at the stage of charge.

Conclusion: The order did not prejudice further investigation and did not suffer from any infirmity warranting interference.

Final Conclusion: The petition was dismissed, and the trial court's direction permitting supervised inspection of unrelied documents in the CBI malkhana was left undisturbed as a measure to secure a fair trial without compromising pending investigation.

Ratio Decidendi: At the stage of compliance with Section 207 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, the accused may be given access to seized materials not relied upon by the prosecution through controlled inspection, if such access is necessary to secure a fair trial and is structured so as not to interfere with any pending investigation.

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