Jurisdiction Of Criminal Courts

Coverage of this Article

Key Takeaways

-A brief introduction to the concept of jurisdiction in the Indian Judiciary as per the Indian laws, prescribed for the different Courts in India.

Introduction

-The word jurisdiction is derived from the Latin terms “juris” and “dicere” which means “law” and “speak” respectively. 

Ordinary place of inquiry and trial

-Section 177 of the Code (CrPC) provides that the inquiry and trial of an offence must be conducted by a Court within whose local jurisdiction the offence has been committed.

Place of inquiry or trial

-Section 178 provides that in case of an ambiguity that exactly in which local area an offence was committed, or if it was committed partly in one local area and partly in another, or if it continued to get committed in more than one local area, then it may be tried or inquired by any of the Courts having the jurisdiction of any of such local areas.

Offence triable where act is done or consequence ensues

-Section 179 of the Code provides that when an offence is committed in a certain local area and its consequences occur in some other local area, then its trial or inquiry can be conducted by any Court having the jurisdiction of either of such local areas.

Place of trial where act is an offence because of relation to other offence

-As per Section 180 of the Code, when an offence is committed concerning another act that itself is an offence or would be an offence if was committed by the doer himself, then the first mentioned offence can be tried or inquired by the Court having jurisdiction of such local area.

Place of trial in case of certain offences

-Section 181 (1) says that any offence of thug or murder committed by a thug, or of dacoity, of dacoity with murder, or of belonging to a gang of dacoits or escaping from custody can be tried by a Court having jurisdiction over that local area where either the offence was committed or the accused was found.

Offences committed by letters, etc.

-If the offence of cheating is committed by the means of letters or telecommunication messages can be inquired about or tried by the Court in whose jurisdiction such messages were received or sent.

Offence committed on journey or voyage

-Whenever an offence is committed by or against a person, or a thing, in the course of a journey or voyage, then the Court into or through whose local jurisdiction area that person or thing passed during such journey; can conduct the inquiry or trial of such offence as per Section 183 of CrPC.

Place of trial for offences triable together

-Section 184 says that if an offence has been committed which can be charged or tried under Sections 219, 220, 221 of CrPC, or if the offence or offences are committed by one or more persons which can be tried or charged together by virtue of Section 223, then those offences can be tried or inquired into by the Court that is competent to try or inquire into such offences.

Power to order cases to be tried in different sessions divisions

-The State Government under Section 185 has got the power to order for the trial of an offence triable in any district, to be tried in any sessions division; the condition being it should not be repugnant to any direction previously issued by the Hon’ble High Court or the Supreme Court under the Constitution, or under this Code or any other law for the time being in force.

High Court to decide, in case of doubt, district where inquiry or trial shall take place

-If more than one Court has taken cognizance of an offence and the doubt arises as to which Court should inquire and try such offence then, the decision regarding the same shall be taken by the High Court if all such Courts are subordinate to it (Section 186 a).

Power to issue summons or warrant for offence committed beyond local jurisdiction

-Section 187 provides that, if a first-class Magistrate finds a reason to believe that an offence has been committed outside his local jurisdiction, by a person within his local jurisdiction and such offence cannot be tried or inquired by him under Sections 177 to 185 or any other law for the time being in force, then he may inquire into such an offence as if it was committed within his jurisdiction and compel such person to appear before him and also transfer the person to the Magistrate having local jurisdiction of such offence.

Offence committed outside India

-Section 188 states that if an offence is committed outside India by the Indian citizen, or by someone who is not an Indian citizen on the ship or aircraft registered in India; then such an offence may be tried as if it was committed in India, provided that the previous sanction of Central Government is necessary.

Receipt of evidence relating to offences committed outside India

-As per Section 189, when any offence is inquired into or tried under the provisions of section 188, the Central Government may, if it deems fit, direct that copies of depositions made or exhibits produced before a Judicial officer in or for that territory or before a diplomatic or consular representative of India in or for that territory shall be received as evidence by the Court holding such inquiry or trial in any case in which such Court might issue a commission for taking evidence as to the matters to which such depositions or exhibits relate.

Conclusion

-Jurisdiction of the Courts, as already mentioned above, is extremely important for the smooth and systematic function of the judiciary. As the different organs of the Government i.e. Legislature, Executive and Judiciary are kept separate from each other so that there could be no interference in the functioning of each organ of the Government and also prevent the arbitrariness of any of the organs.

Key Takeaways

• A brief introduction to the concept of jurisdiction in the Indian Judiciary as per the Indian laws, prescribed for the different Courts in India.
• A brief explanation of the provisions of CrPC that provide for the jurisdiction of Criminal Courts in India.

Introduction

The word jurisdiction is derived from the Latin terms “juris” and “dicere” which means “law” and “speak” respectively. Every Court in India be it Supreme Court, High Court or the Lower Courts, hasits jurisdiction under which they are required to inquire or try or decide upon an offence. No Courts can go beyond their jurisdiction as prescribed under the law. The rationale behind jurisdictionis to ensure the proper, legitimate and systematic functioning of the judiciary. The Supreme Court of India has original, appellate and advisory jurisdictions as provided under Articles 131, 133 to 136 and 143 of the Constitution of India respectively. The High Courts in India on the other hand have the original, appellate, writ and supervisory jurisdictions. Similarly, Sections 177 to 189 of Chapter XIII of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 provide for the jurisdiction of Criminal Courts in India.

Ordinary place of inquiry and trial

Section 177 of the Code (CrPC) provides that the inquiry and trial of an offence must be conducted by a Court within whose local jurisdiction the offence has been committed.

Place of inquiry or trial

Section 178 provides that in case of an ambiguity that exactly in which local area an offence was committed, or if it was committed partly in one local area and partly in another, or if it continued to get committed in more than one local area, then it may be tried or inquired by any of the Courts having the jurisdiction of any of such local areas.

Offence triable where act is done or consequence ensues

Section 179 of the Code provides that when an offence is committed in a certain local area and its consequences occur in some other local area, then its trial or inquiry can be conducted by any Court having the jurisdiction of either of such local areas.

Place of trial where act is an offence because of relation to other offence

As per Section 180 of the Code, when an offence is committed concerning another act that itself is an offence or would be an offence if was committed by the doer himself, then the first mentioned offence can be tried or inquired by the Court having jurisdiction of such local area.

Place of trial in case of certain offences

Section 181 (1) says that any offence of thug or murder committed by a thug, or of dacoity, of dacoity with murder, or of belonging to a gang of dacoits or escaping from custody can be tried by a Court having jurisdiction over that local area where either the offence was committed or the accused was found.

In case of dacoity or abduction, the Court in whose local jurisdiction the offence was committed, or the kidnapped person was detained or conveyed or concealed; can conduct the trial or inquiry of the offence, as provided under Section 181 (2).

As per Section 181 (3), if the offence of robbery, theft, or extortion has been committed, it can be tried by a Court in whose local jurisdiction any of such offence was committed or the stolen property was possessed by a person or by anyone who knew that such property is stolen property.

Section 181 (4) of the Code provides that in case of criminal misappropriation or criminal breach of trust, the Court in whose local jurisdiction the offence was committed or the property subject to the offence was received or retained or was required to be returned by the accused.

As per Section 181 (5), the offence related to the possession of stolen property can be tried or inquired by the Court having local jurisdiction of the area where the offence was committed or the stolen property was possessed or received by the person having knowledge that such property is stolen.

Offences committed by letters, etc.

If the offence of cheating is committed by the means of letters or telecommunication messages can be inquired about or tried by the Court in whose jurisdiction such messages were received or sent. Also, the offence of inducing the delivery of property can be inquired or tried by the Court in whose jurisdiction the property was delivered by the deceived or received by the accused, as per Section 182 (1) of CrPC.

As per Section 182 (2), if the offence committed under Sections 494 (Prohibition to marry again during lifetime of husband or wife) and 495 (concealment of former marriage from person with whom subsequent marriage is contracted) of IPC, then it can be inquired or tried by the Court in whose local jurisdiction it was committed or where the offender last resided by his or her spouse by first marriage or where the wife by the first marriage took the permanent residence.

Offence committed on journey or voyage

Whenever an offence is committed by or against a person, or a thing, in the course of a journey or voyage, then the Court into or through whose local jurisdiction area that person or thing passed during such journey; can conduct the inquiry or trial of such offence as per Section 183 of CrPC.

Place of trial for offences triable together

Section 184 says that if an offence has been committed which can be charged or tried under Sections 219, 220, 221 of CrPC, or if the offence or offences are committed by one or more persons which can be tried or charged together by virtue of Section 223, then those offences can be tried or inquired into by the Court that is competent to try or inquire into such offences.

Power to order cases to be tried in different sessions divisions

The State Government under Section 185 has got the power to order for the trial of an offence triable in any district, to be tried in any sessions division; the condition being it should not be repugnant to any direction previously issued by the Hon’ble High Court or the Supreme Court under the Constitution, or under this Code or any other law for the time being in force.

High Court to decide, in case of doubt, district where inquiry or trial shall take place

If more than one Court has taken cognizance of an offence and the doubt arises as to which Court should inquire and try such offence then, the decision regarding the same shall be taken by the High Court if all such Courts are subordinate to it (Section 186 a). However, in case the Courts are not subordinate to the same High Court, then the High Court within the local limit of whose criminal appellate jurisdiction the proceedings were commenced first, shall decide upon it and hence, all other proceedings with respect to such offence shall be discontinued (Section 186 b).

Power to issue summons or warrant for offence committed beyond local jurisdiction

Section 187 provides that, if a first-class Magistrate finds a reason to believe that an offence has been committed outside his local jurisdiction, by a person within his local jurisdiction and such offence cannot be tried or inquired by him under Sections 177 to 185 or any other law for the time being in force, then he may inquire into such an offence as if it was committed within his jurisdiction and compel such person to appear before him and also transfer the person to the Magistrate having local jurisdiction of such offence.

However, if there are more Magistrates than one, under whose jurisdiction such offence was committed, then the Magistrate acting under this Section cannot be qualified to decide as to whom the accused shall be transferred. In such a case, the Hon’ble High Court decides over the same.

Offence committed outside India

Section 188 states that if an offence is committed outside India by the Indian citizen, or by someone who is not an Indian citizen on the ship or aircraft registered in India; then such an offence may be tried as if it was committed in India, provided that the previous sanction of Central Government is necessary.

Receipt of evidence relating to offences committed outside India

As per Section 189, when any offence is inquired into or tried under the provisions of section 188, the Central Government may, if it deems fit, direct that copies of depositions made or exhibits produced before a Judicial officer in or for that territory or before a diplomatic or consular representative of India in or for that territory shall be received as evidence by the Court holding such inquiry or trial in any case in which such Court might issue a commission for taking evidence as to the matters to which such depositions or exhibits relate.

Conclusion

Jurisdiction of the Courts, as already mentioned above, is extremely important for the smooth and systematic function of the judiciary. As the different organs of the Government i.e. Legislature, Executive and Judiciary are kept separate from each other so that there could be no interference in the functioning of each organ of the Government and also prevent the arbitrariness of any of the organs. It also ensures the fair functioning of all the three organs of the Government. Similarly, in the judiciary, the functioning of all the Courts is decided according to the hierarchy and the kinds of duties and powers the respective Courts are assigned with. Hence, the jurisdiction of the Courts facilitates the just and fair functioning of the Courts by ensuring that none of the Courts is overburdened with the cases to decide upon and no Court is given an opportunity to get away with its obligations prescribed by the respective Indian laws.