The apex court on Monday ruled that powers of the Session Judge, being Justice of Peace, to issue directives for registration of First Information Report (FIR) and adjudication relating to transfer of investigation from one police officer to another under 22-A of the Criminal Procedure Code is not ultra vires by any attribute.
A larger bench headed by Chief Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali and comprising Justice Mian Saqib Nisar, Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan, Justice Mushir Alam and Justice Manzoor Ahmad Malik had reserved judgement on March 12 in response to identical petitions, contending that registration of the FIR is the police business. A 28-page reserved judgement, authored by Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan, was announced here with a three pages additional note of Justice Manzoor Ahmad.
The judgment said that a number of questions were formulated in the current matter including; "Whether Section 22-A Cr.P.C. is ultra vires of the Constitution inasmuch as it confers Executive powers to a Judicial Officer? and b) Whether its alleged misuse is not in consonance with the canons of expeditious justice? And c) Whether the exercise of power under Section 22-A Cr.P.C. amounts to interference in the investigative domain of police, which is violative of this Court's judgement in Muhammad Bashir Vs. Station House Officer, Okara (PLD 2007 SC 539) and Imtiaz Ahmad. Vs. Government of Pakistan (1994 SCMR 2142)?"
Writing the additional note, Justice Manzoor Ahmad Malik said: "provisions especially Section 22-A of the CrPC though beneficial and advantageous to the public at large, yet in myriad cases, it has been misused and abused." He said once a false criminal case is registered against an individual it becomes exceedingly difficult for him/her to get rid of it as time and money which is spent on acquiring a clean chit by way of cancellation of the case or acquittal is a cumbersome process.