Full disclosure of witness statements and documents is required absent a specific withholding request under criminal procedure.

Where no specific request was made under Section 173(6) to withhold any part of the material, the prosecution must disclose to the accused the witness statements and connected documents forwarded with the police report. Section 173(5) requires the investigating agency to send all relevant documents and statements to the Magistrate, and Section 207 obliges supply to the accused subject only to limited statutory exceptions. The Delhi HC emphasised that the prosecution cannot select material for disclosure on its own, because fair investigation and fair trial require access to relevant statements and documents for defence preparation and effective cross-examination. The refusal to supply the requested material was therefore unjustified.

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Issues: Whether the accused was entitled to copies of all statements recorded under Section 161(3) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 and the connected documents sought by him, where no specific request had been made by the police officer under Section 173(6) to withhold any part of the material.

Analysis: Section 173(5) obliges the investigating agency to forward to the Magistrate all documents and the statements of persons whom the prosecution proposes to examine as witnesses. Section 173(6) permits withholding of any part of a statement only where the police officer records reasons and makes a specific request to the Magistrate. Section 207 then requires the Magistrate to furnish to the accused copies of the police report, FIR, witness statements and forwarded documents, subject only to the limited statutory exceptions. On the record, no specific request had been made in the charge-sheet to withhold the disputed statements or documents. The Court held that the prosecution cannot pick and choose material to be disclosed, since fair investigation and fair trial require full disclosure of relevant statements and documents necessary for the defence and for effective cross-examination.

Conclusion: The accused was entitled to the statements and documents sought, and the refusal to supply them was unjustified.

Ratio Decidendi: In the absence of a specific request under Section 173(6), the prosecution must disclose to the accused the statements of all witnesses proposed to be examined and the relevant documents forwarded with the police report, subject only to the limited statutory discretion of the Magistrate.

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