HC empowers CBI to probe pre-Aug 5 cases
The Jammu and Kashmir High Court has held that CBI is empowered with general consent to investigate offences in the erstwhile state of J&K.
Justice Sanjay Dhar of J&K and Ladakh High Court held that CBI is empowered with general consent to investigate offences in the erstwhile State of J&K.
While dismissing the bunch of petitions, Justice Dhar observed that besides laying challenge on the ground of jurisdiction of the CBI to investigate the offences, certain other grounds of challenge to the prosecution launched by Central Bureau of Investigation against the petitioners, which are peculiar to individual cases have also been raised by the petitioners. The petitions have been clubbed together.
It has been contended that CBI lacks jurisdiction to investigate the FIRs which have been impugned in these petitions because no consent in terms of Section 6 of the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act (hereinafter referred to as DSPE Act) has been accorded by the erstwhile State of J&K to the investigation of the instant cases.
According to the petitioners, the Central Bureau of Investigation, before undertaking investigation of the impugned FIRs, was bound to obtain consent of the State Government in individual cases in terms of Section 6 of the DSPE Act and because the same has not been done, as such, the CBI lacks inherent jurisdiction to investigate the impugned FIRs and to file challan against the petitioners.
Court do not find any reason to depart from the consistent view taken by this Court that the erstwhile State of J&K has accorded a general consent to the exercise of jurisdiction of CBI to investigate certain classes of offences in the erstwhile State of J&K and that the contention that CBI lacks jurisdiction to investigate these classes of offences in the erstwhile State of J&K, is without any merit.
Court observed that for the foregoing reasons the common question of law that has arisen in all these petitions is answered in the following manner the erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir has accorded general consent under Section 6 of the DSPE Act for exercise of jurisdiction by the CBI to investigate the offences mentioned in the consent letter dated 07.05.1958 read with letter dated 18.12.1963 and that these communications have not been withdrawn by a competent authority of the erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir.
Thus, the Central Bureau of Investigation has jurisdiction to investigate the offences mentioned in the aforesaid two consent letters read with notification dated 01.04.1964 and order dated 01.04.1964 and directed the Registries of both the Wings of this High Court to delink all these petitions and list the same separately before the roster Bench for consideration on other legal grounds raised in the petitions on individual basis.
Since the stay of proceedings before the Trial court was granted primarily on the ground of jurisdiction of the CBI to investigate the impugned FIRs, as such, having regard to the answer rendered by this Court to the said question of law, the stay of proceedings before the Trial court shall stand vacated. The matters be listed before the Registrar Judicial, Jammu and Registrar Judicial, Srinagar on 20.02.2023 for fixing of dates in individual cases.
