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2020 (9) TMI 419
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....ing of five Judges. 2. At the outset, it is required to be noted that the decision of this Court in the case of Mohan Lal (supra) taking the view that in case the investigation is conducted by the police officer who himself is the complainant, the trial is vitiated and the accused is entitled to acquittal, came up for consideration subsequently before this Court in the case of Varinder Kumar v. State of Himachal Pradesh 2019 (3) SCALE 50 = (2020) 3 SCC 321 and a three Judge Bench of this Court [out of which two Hon'ble Judges were also in the Bench in the case of Mohan Lal (supra)] held that the decision of this Court in the case of Mohan Lal (supra) shall be applicable prospectively, meaning thereby, all pending criminal prosecutions, trials and appeals prior to the law laid down in Mohan Lal (supra) shall continue to be governed by individual facts of the case. The relevant observations in the case of Varinder Kumar (supra) to be referred and considered hereinbelow. 3. Shri Sushil Kumar Jain, learned Senior Advocate appearing on behalf of the accused - Devendra Singh has made the following submissions in support of his submission that as rightly held by this Court in the ca....
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....e the police, the accused, the lawyer and the courts in a state of uncertainty and confusion which has to be avoided. Thereafter it is held that a fair investigation which is but the very foundation of a fair trial, necessarily postulates that the informant and the investigator must not be the same person. Justice must not only be done, but must appear to be done also. Any possibility of bias or a pre-determined conclusion has to be excluded. This requirement is all the more imperative in laws carrying a reverse burden of proof; 3.2 The reasons which found favour in Mohan Lal (supra) are inherent and inbuilt by the legislature in Chapter V - "Procedure", which would be the "... procedure established by law" for the purpose of Article 21; 3.3 As is now settled after the decision in the case of Menaka Gandhi v. Union of India (1978) 1 SCC 248 that the procedure established by law under Article 21 cannot be "any procedure" but has to be a just and a reasonable procedure and hence right of the accused to have a fair and independent investigation and trial, being inherent has been "read into" into the statutes not confirming to fair procedure to make them constitutionally compatib....
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....ce given to an officer in charge of a police station and recorded under Section 154 Cr.P.C. 3.7 A cryptic message on telephone etc. which under the NDPS Act is similar to the information provided by a secret informer etc. cannot therefore constitute an FIR. It is only after recoveries are effected and/or arrests made, information regarding commission of a cognizable offence crystallises. After such handing over, the Role of a Section 42 officer comes to an end, except he has to make a report of his action to his superior officer within 48 hours under Section 57 of the NDPS Act. For all practical purposes, the time when Section 42 officer hands over the person arrested or the goods seized, is the first-time information is received by the "investigating officer" and that is the time of commencement of investigation. Heavy reliance is placed upon the decisions of this Court in the cases of H.N. Rishbud v. State of Delhi AIR 1955 SC 196; and Manu Sharma v. State (NCT of Delhi) (2010) 6 SCC 1; 3.8 If the officer under Section 41(2) or Section 42 receives some secret information, he is statutorily required to inform the same under Section 42(2) of the Act to his superior officer af....
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....gency lends credibility and fairness to both the sides. If the officer under Section 42 is to be proceeded against, his trial would also be based upon "investigated" material. It would also exclude possibility of abuse and source of corruption due to the wide powers under the NDPS Act; 3.9 Handing over or continuation of investigation by the officer who has acted under Section 42 to effect search, seizure or arrest is not therefore be comprehended under the scheme. It would render Section 58 completely redundant and otiose as he would not investigate against himself and file a chargesheet against himself. If the accused is not found to be in possession, the Investigating Officer would have to explain his source or else "possession" of a contraband in his possession would also attract Section 8. The scheme of making two separate sections i.e. Sections 42 and 53 empowering officers for different purposes would have been unnecessary. If the legislative intent was such, officer under Section 42 would have been given an additional power of investigation and then Section 53 was unnecessary; 3.10 There was no need for a provision like Section 52(3) which mandates handover of article....
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....urisprudence. Any action which impinges or affects those rights would be said to cause "prejudice to an accused". That in the case of Rafiq Ahmad v. State of U.P (2011) 8 SCC 300, it is observed and held that prejudice to an accused or failure of justice has to be examined with reference to (i) right to fair trial (ii) presumption of innocence until pronouncement of guilt and (iii) the standards of proof. It is observed in the said decision that whenever a plea of prejudice is raised by the accused, it must be examined with reference to the above rights and safeguards, as it is the violation of these rights alone that may result in the weakening of the case of the prosecution and benefit to the accused in accordance with law; 3.17 Section 457 Cr.P.C. in effect saves an order of conviction and sentence despite there being an error, omission or irregularity in the complaint, summons, warrant, proclamation, order, judgment or other proceedings before or during trial or in any inquiry or other proceedings under Cr.P.C., or in any sanction for the prosecution unless in the opinion of the Court "failure of justice" has been occasioned thereby. According to the prosecution therefore be....
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....articularly Sections 41, 42, 43, 52(3) and 53 of the Act require that the officer empowered to raid, seize and arrest who may be the complainant shall be different from the investigator of the case; 4.4 The criminal proceedings stand vitiated if the complainant/informant and the investigator of the case is the same person in view of the following reasons: a) If the complainant/informer and the Investigator are same persons, it will violate the principle of Rule against Bias which is a part of Principles of Natural Justice and included in Fundamental Right enshrined in Article 14 and 21 of the Constitution of India. In this regard he is relying upon para 14, 18 and 31 of Mohan Lal (Supra). b) In such case like NDPS where there is reverse burden of proof in sections 35, 54, 66 and 68, the burden shall be on the prosecution to prove that no prejudice is caused to the accused in the investigation conducted by the complainant/Informer. In this regard he is relying upon para 14 and 18 of Mohan Lal (Supra). c) In such case, the complainant will always be interested in filing charge sheet against the accused (which is normal human behavior). He will have perso....
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.... or by any person other than a magistrate who is authorised by a magistrate in this behalf. Section 2(o) defines "officer in charge of a police station" and it includes when the officer in charge of the police station is absent from the station-house or unable from illness or other cause to perform his duties, the police officer present at the station-house who is next in rank to such officer and is above the rank of a constable or, when the State Government so directs, any other police officer so present. It is submitted that under Cr.P.C., the criminal law is set into motion either under Chapter XII which relates to information to police officers; or Chapter XV which relates to complaints to magistrates. The present case relates to Chapter XII, Cr.P.C. where the informant of the offence is a police officer; 5.2 As per Section 154 Cr.P.C., every information relating to the commission of a cognizable offence, if given orally to an officer in charge of a police station shall be reduced in writing by him or under his direction, and be read over to the informant; and every such information, whether given in writing or reduced in writing shall be signed by the person giving it, and ....
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....id section, which he is not empowered to, then his proceedings would be void. However, the illegalities under both these provisions are by the magistrate and not by the investigating officer; 5.6 Section 462 of the Code provides that no finding, sentence or order of any Criminal Court shall be set aside merely on the ground that the inquiry, trial or other proceedings took place in a wrong sessions division, district, sub-division or other local area, unless it appears that such error has in fact occasioned a failure of justice. Section 463 of the Code provides that even if there is non- compliance in recording the confession under Section 164 of the Code, even then the same may be admissible if such non-compliance has not injured the accused in his defence on the merits and that he duly made the statement recorded, admit such statement. Section 465 of the Code provides that no finding, sentence or order passed by a court of competent jurisdiction shall be reversed or altered by a Court of Appeal on account of any error, omission or irregularity in the complaint, summons, warrant, proclamation, order, judgment or other proceedings before or during trial or in any enquiry or othe....
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.... (supra) were indeed extremely telling insofar as the defaults on the part of the prosecution were concerned. It is further observed that in that background it was held that the issue could not be left to be decided on the facts of a case, impinging on the right of a fair trial to an accused under Article 21 of the Constitution of India. It is further observed in the said decision in para 11 that the paramount consideration being to interpret the law so that it operates fairly, the facts of that case did not show any need to visualise what all exceptions must be carved out and provided for. The attention of the Court was also not invited to the need for considering the carving out of exceptions. It is further observed that individual rights of the accused are undoubtedly important, but equally important is the social interest for bringing the offender to book and for the system to send the right message to all in the society - be it the law-abiding citizen or the potential offender. It is further observed that the social interest mandates that the law laid down in Mohan Lal (supra) cannot be allowed to become a spring board by an accused for being catapulted to acquittal, irrespect....
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.... cases of false implication. Thus, it is inevitable for a court of law to pass a specific order as to the fate of the investigation, which in its opinion is unfair, tainted and in violation of the settled principles of investigative canons. Therefore, failure of justice - defect in investigation does not vitiate the trial unless prejudice is caused to the accused; 5.10.2 The second concept is with regard to failure of justice and prejudice to the accused. This involves the shifting of the burden on the accused to illustrate how the procedure and the factual circumstances/countervailing factors, have resulted in grave prejudice to the investigation and to him/her in particular. Reliance is placed upon the decisions of this Court in the cases of H.N. Rishbud v. State of Delhi 1955 (1) SCR 1150; Niranjan Singh v. State of U.P. 1956 SCR 734; Paramjit Singh v. State of Punjab (2007) 13 SCC 530; Rekha v. State of Maharashtra (2010) 15 SCC 725; and Union of India v. T. Nathamuni (2014) 16 SCC 285; 5.10.3 In light of the aforesaid twin tests, it is prayed to lay down a flexible rule wherein the right to fair investigation does not become a spring board for acquittal in cases wherein ....
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.... investigation" . The Court however, yet held that only trials and appeals prior to the law laid down in Mohan Lal (supra) shall continue to be governed by the individual facts of the case. It is submitted that this distinction is artificial and unjustified in law; 6.3 The order of Reference dated 17.01.2019 correctly records that in a given case, where the complainant himself had conducted investigation, such aspect of the matter can certainly be given due weightage while assessing the evidence on record but it would be completely a different thing to say that the trial itself would be vitiated for such infraction. But Mohan Lal (Supra) has ruled that the trial itself would stand vitiated on that count; 6.4 The decision of this Court in Mohan Lal (supra) has not considered Section 157 of the Cr.P.C. The interference with the exercise of power under Section 157 would be warranted only if the peculiar facts of each case require. This is more so because there are safeguards in the statute itself and Section 157 has to be read with Sections 158 and 159 of the Cr.P.C.; 6.5 An information report is not a condition precedent for setting criminal investigation to motion and an of....
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....so a part of the IPC, namely Section 304B and all offences under the IPC are to be investigated in accordance with the provisions of the Cr.P.C. and consequently the informant himself can investigate the said offences under Section 157 Cr.P.C. Law, in other words, does not disapprove of nor frowns upon this practice. These protections will remain even when the complainant is the investigating officer; 6.9 That this Court in the case of Mohan Lal (supra) also did not consider the scheme of the NDPS Act; 6.10 Investigation of an offence is a field exclusively reserved for the police whose powers remain unfettered as long as they remain complaint with the provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure. It is only in extraordinary circumstances of abuse of authority that the Court may interfere. The rule as laid down in Mohan Lal (supra) imposed a restriction on the procedure of investigation which is not contemplated by the Code and disregards the principle that the functions of the judiciary and the investigating agency are complementary and not overlapping and each should be left to exercise its function in the area demarcated for it subject to intervention in an appropriate cas....
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....r, it is required to be noted that in that case the investigation was conducted by a Head Constable who himself was the person to whom the bribe was alleged to have been offered and who lodged the first information report as informant or the complainant. It was noted that the entire case of the prosecution rests solely on the testimony of the Head Constable - Ram Singh and four other police constables. It was found that there was not a single independent witness to depose to the offer of bribe by the accused. It was noticed that the Head Constable - Ram Singh did not make any effort to get independent respectable witnesses in whose presence the seizure could be made. This Court also noticed that the Head Constable could have easily sent one of the four police constables accompanying him to a nereby village in order to get some independent respectable witnesses, if for any reason that was not possible, he could have taken the accused and one another together with the cart to the police station and then made a seizure memo in the presence of independent respectable Panch witnesses. This Court also noticed from the statement made by the accused under Section 342 Cr.P.C. that some othe....
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.... is observed and held as under: "4. After considering the facts and circumstances of the case, it appears to us that there is discrepancy in the depositions of PWs 2 and 3 and in the absence of any independent corroboration such discrepancy does not inspire confidence about the reliability of the prosecution case. We have also noted another disturbing feature in this case. PW3, Siri Chand, Head Constable arrested the accused and on search being conducted by him a pistol and the cartridges were recovered from the accused. It was on his complaint a formal first information report was lodged and the case was initiated. He being complainant should not have proceeded with the investigation of the case. But it appears to us that he was not only the complainant in the case but he carried on with the investigation and examined witnesses under Section 161 Cr.P.C. Such practice, to say the least, should not be resorted to so that there may not be any occasion to suspect fair and impartial investigation." Therefore, the decision of this Court in the case of Megha Singh (supra) also can be said to be on the peculiar facts of that case and after appreciation of evidence having doubt....
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....minal prosecutions, trials and appeals and they shall be governed by the individual facts of the case. That thereafter on merits and despite the fact that in that case also the informant/complainant and the investigator was the same, this Court has confirmed the conviction. Therefore, in light of the observations made by this Court in the case of Varinder Kumar (supra) that the law laid down by this Court in the case of Mohan Lal (supra) shall be applicable prospectively and shall not affect the pending criminal prosecutions, trials and the appeals, prior to the law laid down in Mohan Lal (supra), meaning thereby that the same shall be applicable prospectively, still this Court has to consider the issue referred to this Court on its own merits. On considering the entire decision of this Court in the case of Mohan Lal (supra), it appears that in this case also the Court did not consider in detail the relevant provisions of the Cr.P.C. under which the investigation can be undertaken by the investigating officer, more particularly Sections 154, 156 and 157 and the other provisions, namely, Section 465 Cr.P.C. and Section 114 of the Indian Evidence Act. Even in the said decision, th....
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....not to have investigated the case and that itself had caused prejudice to the accused. The relevant observations of this Court in the case of V. Jayapaul (supra) are as under: "4. We have no hesitation in holding that the approach of the High Court is erroneous and its conclusion legally unsustainable. There is nothing in the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code which precluded the appellant (Inspector of Police, Vigilance) from taking up the investigation. The fact that the said police officer prepared the FIR on the basis of the information received by him and registered the suspected crime does not, in our view, disqualify him from taking up the investigation of the cognisable offence. A suo motu move on the part of the police officer to investigate a cognisable offence impelled by the information received from some sources is not outside the purview of the provisions contained in Sections 154 to 157 of the Code or any other provisions of the Code. The scheme of Sections 154, 156 and 157 was clarified thus by Subba Rao, J. speaking for the Court in State of U.P. v. Bhagwant Kishore Joshi: (AIR p. 223, para 8). "Section 154 of the Code prescribes the mode o....
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....ly hampered for no good reason. What is expected to be done by the police officers in the normal course of discharge of their official duties will then be vulnerable to attack. 7. There are two decisions of this Court from which support was drawn in this case and in some other cases referred to by the High Court. We would like to refer to these two decisions in some detail. The first one is the case of Bhagwan Singh v. State of Rajasthan. There, the Head Constable to whom the offer of bribe was allegedly made, seized the currency notes and gave the first information report. Thereafter, he himself took up the investigation. But, later on, when it came to his notice that he was not authorised to do so, he forwarded the papers to the Deputy Superintendent of Police. The DSP then reinvestigated the case and filed the charge-sheet against the accused. The Head Constable and the accompanying constables were the only witnesses in that case. This Court found several circumstances which cast a doubt on the veracity of the version of the Head Constable and his colleagues. This Court observed that "the entire story sounds unnatural". While so holding, this Court referred to "a rather....
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....rved: (SCC p. 711, para 4) "PW 3 Siri Chand, Head Constable arrested the accused and on search being conducted by him a pistol and the cartridges were recovered from the accused. It was on his complaint a formal first information report was lodged and the case was initiated. He being complainant should not have proceeded with the investigation of the case. But it appears to us that he was not only the complainant in the case but he carried on with the investigation and examined witnesses under Section 161 CrPC. Such practice, to say the least, should not be resorted to so that there may not be any occasion to suspect fair and impartial investigation." 12. At first blush, the observations quoted above might convey the impression that the Court laid down a proposition that a police officer who in the course of discharge of his duties finds certain incriminating material to connect a person to the crime, shall not undertake further investigation if the FIR was recorded on the basis of the information furnished by him. On closer analysis of the decision, we do not think that any such broad proposition was laid down in that case. While appreciating the evidence of the ....
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.... was placed on the decision in Megha Singh v. State of Haryana wherein this Court observed that the constable, who was the de facto complainant had himself investigated the case and this affects impartial investigation. This Court said that the Head Constable who arrested the accused, conducted the search, recovered the pistol and on his complaint FIR was lodged and the case was initiated and later he himself recorded the statement of the witnesses under Section 161 CrPC as part of the investigation and such practice may not be resorted to as it may affect fair and impartial investigation. This decision was later referred to by this Court in State v. V. Jayapaul wherein it was observed that: (SCC p. 227, para 6) "We find no principle or binding authority to hold that the moment the competent police officer, on the basis of information received, makes out an FIR incorporating his name as the informant, he forfeits his right to investigate. If at all, such investigation could only be assailed on the ground of bias or real likelihood of bias on the part of the investigating officer. The question of bias would depend on the facts and circumstances of each case and it is not pr....
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....investigate. Therefore, as such, a duty is cast on an officer in charge of a police station to reduce the information in writing relating to commission of a cognizable offence and thereafter to investigate the same. Section 157 Cr.P.C. specifically provides that if, from information received or otherwise, an officer in charge of a police station has reason to suspect the commission of an offence which he is empowered under Section 156 to investigate, he shall forthwith send a report of the same to a Magistrate empowered to take cognizance of such offence upon a police report and shall proceed in person to the spot to investigate the facts and circumstances of the case and, if necessary, to take measures for the discovery and arrest of the offender. Therefore, considering Section 157 Cr.P.C., either on receiving the information or otherwise (may be from other sources like secret information, from the hospital, or telephonic message), it is an obligation cast upon such police officer, in charge of a police station, to take cognizance of the information and to reduce into writing by himself and thereafter to investigate the facts and circumstances of the case, and, if necessary,....
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....r to hold preliminary enquiry before recording FIR. Use of expression "information" without any qualification also denotes that police has to record information despite it being unsatisfied by its reasonableness or credibility. Therefore, the officer in charge of a police station has to reduce such information alleging commission of a cognizable offence in writing which may be termed as FIR and thereafter he is required to further investigate the information, which is reduced in writing. 9.3 Now let us consider the relevant provisions under the NDPS Act with respect to the procedure to be followed to issue warrant, authorisation of entry, search, seizure and arrest without warrant or authorisation; seizure and arrest in public place; entry; stop and search conveyance and the conditions under which search of persons shall be conducted. The relevant provisions are Sections 41, 42, 43, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 57, 57A, which are as under: "41. Power to issue warrant and authorisation.-(l) A Metropolitan Magistrate or a Magistrate of the first class or any Magistrate of the second class specially empowered by the State Government in this behalf, may issue a warrant for t....
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....fficer acting under section 42. 42. Power of entry, search, seizure and arrest without warrant or authorisation.-(l) Any such officer (being an officer superior in rank to a peon, sepoy or constable) of the departments of central excise, narcotics, customs, revenue intelligence or any other department of the Central Government including para-military forces or armed forces as is empowered in this behalf by general or special order by the Central Government, or any such officer (being an officer superior in rank to a peon, sepoy or constable) of the revenue, drugs control, excise, police or any other department of a State Government as is empowered in this behalf by general or special order of the State Government, if he has reason to believe from personal knowledge or information given by any person and taken down in writing that any narcotic drug, or psychotropic substance, or controlled substance in respect of which an offence punishable under this Act has been committed or any document or other article which may furnish evidence of the commission of such offence or any illegally acquired property or any document or other article which may furnish evidence of holding any....
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....o confiscation under this Act, any document or other article which he has reason to believe may furnish evidence of the commission of an offence punishable under this Act or any document or other article which may furnish evidence of holding any illegally acquired property which is liable for seizure or freezing or forfeiture under Chapter VA of this Act; (b) detain and search any person whom he has reason to believe to have committed an offence punishable under this Act, and if such person has any narcotic drug or psychotropic substance or controlled substance in his possession and such possession appears to him to be unlawful, arrest him and any other person in his company. Explanation.-For the purposes of this section, the expression "public place" includes any public conveyance, hotel, shop, or other place intended for use by, or accessible to, the public.] 49. Power to stop and search conveyance.-Any officer authorised under section 42, may, if he has reason to suspect that any animal or conveyance is, or is about to be, used for the transport of any narcotic drug or psychotropic substance 2 [or controlled substance], in respect of which he suspects ....
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....in so far as they are not inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, to all warrants issued and arrests, searches and seizures made under this Act. 52. Disposal of persons arrested and articles seized.- (1) Any officer arresting a person under section 41, section 42, section 43 or section 44 shall, as soon as may be, inform him of the grounds for such arrest. (2) Every person arrested and article seized under warrant issued under sub- section (1) of section 41 shall be forwarded without unnecessary delay to the Magistrate by whom the warrant was issued. (3) Every person arrested and article seized under sub-section (2) of section 41, section 42, section 43 or section 44 shall be forwarded without unnecessary delay to- (a) the officer-in-charge of the nearest police station, or (b) the officer empowered under section 53. (4) The authority or officer to whom any person or article is forwarded under sub- section (2) or sub-section (3) shall, with all convenient despatch, take such measures as may be necessary for the disposal according to law of such person or article. 53. Power to invest officers of certain de....
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....charge of the police station. 57. Report of arrest and seizure.-Whenever any person makes any arrest or seizure under this Act, he shall, within forty-eight hours next after such arrest or seizure, make a full report of all the particulars of such arrest or seizure to his immediate official superior. 57A. Report of seizure of property of the person arrested by the notified officer.-Whenever any officer notified under section 53 makes an arrest or seizure under this Act, and the provisions of Chapter VA apply to any person involved in the case of such arrest or seizure, the officer shall make a report of the illegally acquired properties of such person to the jurisdictional competent authority within ninety days of the arrest or seizure." 9.3.1 Section 67 of the NDPS Act authorises/permits any officer referred to in section 42 to call for information from any person for the purpose of satisfying himself whether there has been any contravention of the provisions of the NDPS Act or any rule or order made thereunder, during the course of any enquiry. Section 68 of the NDPS Act provides that no officer acting in exercise of powers vested in him under any provision o....
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....nfiscation under this Act and any document or other article which he has reason to believe may furnish evidence of the commission of any offence punishable under this Act or furnish evidence of holding any illegally acquired property which is liable for seizure or freezing or forfeiture under Chapter VA of this Act; and detain and search, and, if he thinks proper, arrest any person whom he has reason to believe to have committed any offence punishable under this Act. 9.3.4 As per sub-section 2 of Section 42, such an officer has to send a copy of the information taken down in writing under sub-section 1 or his grounds for belief, to his immediate official superior within 72 hours. 9.3.5 There are inbuilt safeguards provided under the NDPS Act itself, such as, Sections 50 and 52. Section 50 of the NDPS Act provides that when any officer duly authorised under section 42 is about to search any person under the provisions of section 41, 42 or 43, he shall inform the person to be searched in the presence of a Gazetted Officer of any of the departments mentioned in Section 42 or to the nearest Magistrate and if such person so desires, he shall take such person without unnecessary de....
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....central excise, narcotics, customs, revenue intelligence or any other department of the Central Government including para-military forces or armed forces or any class of such officers with the powers of an officer in charge of a police station for the investigation of the offences under the NDPS Act. Sub-section 2 of Section 53 further provides that the State Government, may, by notification published in the Official Gazette, invest any officer of the department of drugs control, revenue or excise or any other department or any class of such officers with the powers of an officer in charge of a police station for the investigation of offences under the NDPS Act. Therefore, other persons authorised by the Central Government or the State Government can be the officer in charge of a police station for the investigation of the offences. Section 53 does not speak that all those officers to be authorised to exercise the powers of an officer in charge of a police station for the investigation of the offences under the NDPS Act shall be other than those officers authorised under Sections 41, 42, 43, and 44 of the NDPS Act. It appears that the legislature in its wisdom has never thought ....
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....e informant who himself has seized the offending material from the accused and he himself thereafter investigates the case, there shall be all possibilities of apprehension in the mind of he accused that there shall not be fair investigation and that the concerned officer shall try to prove his own version/seizure and therefore there shall be denial of the "fair investigation" enshrined under Article 21 of the Constitution of India is concerned, it is required to be noted that whether the investigation conducted by the concerned informant was fair investigation or not is always to be decided at the time of trial. The concerned informant/investigator will be cited as a witness and he is always subject to cross-examination. There may be cases in which even the case of the prosecution is not solely based upon the deposition of the informant/informant-cum-investigator but there may be some independent witnesses and/or even the other police witnesses. As held by this Court in catena of decisions, the testimony of police personnel will be treated in the same manner as testimony of any other witness and there is no principal of law that without corroboration by independent witnesses his t....
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....he cases of reverse burden of proof, the presumption can operate only after the initial burden which exists on the prosecution is satisfied. At this stage, it is required to be noted that the reverse burden does not merely exist in special enactments like the NDPS Act and the Prevention of Corruption Act, but is also a part of the IPC - Section 304B and all such offences under the Penal Code are to be investigated in accordance with the provisions of the Cr.P.C. and consequently the informant can himself investigate the said offences under Section 157 Cr.P.C. 11. Therefore, as such, there is no reason to doubt the credibility of the informant and doubt the entire case of the prosecution solely on the ground that the informant has investigated the case. Solely on the basis of some apprehension or the doubts, the entire prosecution version cannot be discarded and the accused is not to be straightway acquitted unless and until the accused is able to establish and prove the bias and the prejudice. As held by this Court in the case of Ram Chandra (supra) the question of prejudice or bias has to be established and not inferred. The question of bias will have to be decided on the facts....