SC irked over inordinate delay in submission of challans by K-P Police

The Supreme Court (SC) has teken strong exception over inordinate delay in submission of challans by the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Police.

The apex court noted that trials - that would probably conclude by the time the matter of bail came before the top court - could not commence due to police prosecution's neglect in submitting investigation reports (challans).

"Therefore, either the accused is kept from being punished for the crime committed by him or he is unable to secure his freedom on being acquitted; in either eventuality, a wrong signal is sent out, which is that either the judiciary is unnecessarily releasing the accused on bail or keeping innocent persons incarcerated for no good reason. Moreover, the focus shifts away from the early conclusion of trials to incidental matters, such as pursuing the remedy of bail by the accused and the resources of the State and in most cases also those of the complainant’s, expended in opposing bail. Court time is also wasted in attending to bail matters which would have been better spent in attending to the trial and appeals", stated four pages order authored by Justice Qazi Faez Isa in a matter regarding the post-arrest bail of an accused who was arrested in carrying an unlicensed pistol, a shotgun, a rifle and considerable quantity of their bullets and cartridges.

Read more K-P prohibits issuance of new arms licences

When the K-P additional advocate general (AAG) was asked why the investigation report (challan) had still not been submitted after a period of over two months, he stated that this was a perennial problem in the province. However, he opposed the bail contending that the petitioner was caught red-handed.

A division bench of the apex court comprising Justice Qazi Faez Isa and Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah in its order noted that in this case, no in-depth investigation was required because, as per the police who were the complainant of the case, the petitioner was caught with the said weapons and its ammunition.

Belated submission of investigation reports, and for no ostensible reason, undermined the rule of law and is a good indicator of bad governance, the apex bench noted.

The court further pointed out that just a couple of days earlier, in another bail matter (Criminal Petition No. 616/2021 titled Shahzad Khan v The State through Advocate General Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), the bench had also noted the abject neglect of the prosecution in not having submitted the investigation report (challan) even after a lapse of seven months, constraining the court to direct that a copy of the order be sent to the provincial police officer, the secretary, home and tribal affairs department and the provincial advocate general.

”We feel that the matter of non-submission or inordinately late submission of investigation reports needs to be critically examined and redressed by the concerned, particularly as despite the orders of this Court this practice continues and results in lawlessness," the order stated.

The court said that the law, that is, section 173 of the Code, and the observations made by the apex court were repeatedly being disobeyed in the province.

"Whenever citizens violate the law they have to face consequences but the State, with all the resources at its command, is getting away with violating the law far too often. Therefore, we are now constrained to direct that the Chief Secretary Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to arrange and chair a meeting in which the Provincial Police Officer, the Secretary, Home and Tribal Affairs Department, the Director, Public Prosecution and the Advocate General of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa participate to once and for all resolve this endemic problem.”

"Pursuant to such meeting, a report signed by all the said officers to be submitted to this Court for our consideration in Chambers within one month from the receipt of this order. Failing to submit a report or one which does not resolve the problem may constrain us to take notice and pass appropriate orders. The office is directed to send copies of this order for information and compliance," the court order further stated.