Srinagar: A sessions court has dropped the criminal contempt proceedings against IPS officer G V Sundeep Chakravarthy and issued a slew of guidelines to be followed by judicial magistrates and police officers while issuing and executing warrants respectively.
Allowing the revision petition filed by Chakravarthy, who is currently posted as SSP Srinagar, the 2nd Additional Sessions Judge Naushad Ahmad Khan on Monday said the order dated July 6 issued by Judicial Magistrate First Class Tarun Mahajan is set aside.
Initiating suo moto proceedings, Mahajan registered a case against the IPS officer for allegedly undermining the authority of the court by defying its several orders.
“This court hereby takes the judicial notice of commission of offence under section 24 read with section 29 of the police act and on its own motion/ knowledge, (Suo moto) registers the case under section 210 (1) (C) of BNSS, 2023 against Dr. G.V. Sundeep Chakravarthy, IPS, Senior Superintendent of police, Srinagar for the commission of offence under Section 24 of the Police Act punishable under Section 29 of the Police Act due to his repeated non-compliance and repeated violation of duty,” Magistrate Mahajan said in an eight-page order.
The case was registered against the IPS officer for not executing the warrants issued by the court earlier in three cases.
The IPS officer filed a revision petition before the sessions court which ruled in his favour.
“It is, however, clarified that the concern expressed by the learned Judicial Magistrate regarding the timely execution of judicial processes was bona fide and stemmed from the discharge of his judicial functions in safeguarding the authority and efficacy of the judicial process.
“Equally, nothing contained in this order shall be construed as casting any reflection upon the integrity, competence or bona fides of the revision petitioner, who was likewise acting in the discharge of his official responsibilities,” Judge Khan said.
He said all observations contained in the impugned order attributing deliberate misconduct, intentional obstruction of justice, habitual disobedience, institutional collapse of the police machinery or otherwise recording findings touching upon the culpability of the revision petitioner before completion of the procedure contemplated under Section 223 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023 shall stand expunged and shall not be treated as findings on the merits of the allegations.
“In view of the subsequent production of the accused before the competent Court and having regard to the peculiar facts and circumstances of the present case, continuation of the suo motu proceedings initiated by the impugned order is held to be unnecessary and, accordingly, the proceedings initiated pursuant thereto shall stand closed, leaving the questions of law arising in the present revision open for consideration in an appropriate case,” Judge Khan said.
