SAURAV DAS versus UNION OF INDIA & ORS.

Citation: [2023] 1 S.C.R. 731 · Decided: 20-01-2023 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: M.R. SHAH · Disposal: Dismissed

Judgment (excerpt)

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SAURAV DAS
v.
UNION OF INDIA & ORS.
(Writ Petition (Civil) No. 1126 of 2022)
JANUARY 20, 2023
[M. R. SHAH AND C. T. RAVIKUMAR, JJ.]
Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973:ss. 173, 207 – Report of
police officer on completion of investigation – Writ Petition u/Art.
32 seeking direction to all the States to upload all chargesheets on
public domain/websites – Held: Relief sought is contrary to scheme
of CrPC – It would violate the rights of the accused as well as
victim and/or even the investigating agency – Putting the FIR on
the website cannot be equated with putting the chargesheets along
with the relevant documents on the public domain and on the websites
of the State Governments – Chargesheet are not public documents
u/s. 73 of the Evidence Act – Copies of chargesheet do not fall
within s. 4(1)(b) of the RTI Act – Thus, the petitioner not entitled to
the relief – Evidence Act, 1872 – s. 73, 74 – Right to Information
Act , 2005 – s.4(2).
Dismissing the writ petition, the Court
HELD : 1.1 The petitioner is not entitled to the relief as
prayed in the present petition namely directing all the States to
put on their websites the copies of all the chargesheets/challans
filed under Section 173 of the Cr.P.C. [Para 7][736-E]
1.2 On conjoint reading of Section 173 Cr.P.C. and Section
207 Cr.P.C. the Investigating Agency is required to furnish the
copies of the report along with the relevant documents to be
relied upon by the prosecution to the accused and to none others.
Therefore, if the relief as prayed in the present petition is allowed
and all the chargesheets and relevant documents produced along
with the chargesheets are put on the public domain or on the
websites of the State Governments it will be contrary to the
Scheme of the Criminal Procedure Code and it may as such violate
the rights of the accused as well as the victim and/or even the
   [2023] 1 S.C.R. 731
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SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[2023] 1 S.C.R.
investigating agency. Putting the FIR on the website cannot be
equated with putting the chargesheets along with the relevant
documents on the public domain and on the websites of the State
Governments. [Para 4.5 ][735-E-G]
1.3. Documents mentioned in Section 74 of the Evidence
Act only can be said to be public documents, the certified copies
of which are to be given by the concerned police officer having
the custody of such a public document. Copy of the chargesheet
along with the necessary documents cannot be said to be public
documents within the definition of Public Documents as per
Section 74 of the Evidence Act.As per Section 75 of the Evidence
Act all other documents other than the documents mentioned
in Section 74 of the Evidence Act are all private documents.
Therefore, the chargesheet/documents along with the
chargesheet cannot be said to be public documents under Section
74 of the Evidence Act, reliance placed upon Sections 74 & 76 of
the Evidence Act is absolutely misplaced. [Para 5][735-H; 736-
A-B]
1.4. Under Section 4(2) of the RTI Act a duty is cast upon
the public authority to take steps in accordance with the
requirements of clause (b) of sub-Section 1 of Section 4 of the
RTI Act to provide as much information suo moto to the public at
regular intervals through various means of communications.
Copies of the chargesheet and the relevant documents along
with the charge-sheet do not fall within Section 4(1)(b) of the
RTI Act. Under the circumstances also the reliance placed
upon Section 4(1)(2) of the RTI Act is also misconceived and
misplaced. [Para 6][736-C-D]
Youth Bar Association of India v. Union of India (2016)
9 SCC 473 – referred to.
Case Law Reference
(2016) 9 SCC 473
referred to
Para 4.1
CIVIL ORIGINAL JURISDICTION : Writ Petition (Civil)
No.1126 of 2022
(Under Article 32 of The Constitution of India)
Prashant Bhushan, Ms. Ria Yadav, Advs. for the Petitioner.
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The Judgment of the Court was delivered by
M. R. SHAH, J.
1. By way of this petition under Article 32 of the Constitution of
India the petitioner has prayed for appropriate directions/orders directing
the respondents - States to enable free public access to chargesheets
and final reports filed as per Section 173 of the Code of Criminal
Procedure, 1973 (hereinafter referred to as ‘Cr.P.C’) in furtherance of
the rationale as established by this Court in Youth Bar Association of
India v. Union of India, (2016) 9 SCC 473 on their websites.
2. Shri Prashant Bhushan, learned counsel appearin

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