Advocate (Dr.) Prashant Mali's Blog

FIR - What is?  The first information report is a report giving information of the commission of a cognizable crime,  which may be made by the complainant (the term “Complainant” has been used herein the popular  sense) or by any other person knowing about the commission of such an offence. It is intended to set  the criminal law in motion.  A First Information Report is the most important document and forms the basis of the case for  prosecution. The word „First Information Report‟ has not been defined in the CrPC. By practice it has  come to mean the information disclosing commission of a cognizable offence and recorded under Sec.  154 CrPC.   The principal object of FIR is only to make a complaint to the police officer to set the criminal law in  motion while the secondary objective is to obtain early information of an alleged criminal activity and  to record the circumstances before there is time for such circumstances to be forgotten or embellished.   FIR:   Its Characteristics: 

Being a public document, the FIR  cannot be withheld from public domain and would not only lend credence but would bring transparency in the working if the Police Department in case the same is put in public domain. . In this background, it has become imperative that certain directions be issued. Therefore, taking cue from the judgment passed by the learned Division Bench of Delhi High Court, the following directions are issued:- (i) The accused is entitled to get a copy of the First Information report at an earlier stage as prescribed under Section 207 of the Cr.P.C. (ii) An accused who has reasons to suspect that he has been roped in a criminal case and his name may be finding place in a First Information Report can submit an application through his representative/agent/parokar for grant of a certified copy before the concerned police officer or to the Superintendent of Police on payment of such fee which is payable for obtaining such a copy from the court. On such applicati