HC questions relevance of caste column in FIRs

Saurabh Malik

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 1

More than a year has lapsed since the states of Punjab and Haryana, along with Chandigarh, agreed to delete the column of caste in police records and FIRs, but its successful compliance has not been effectively brought to the High Court’s notice.

Taking up the issue, Justice Mahabir Singh Sindhu has asked Haryana state counsel to seek instructions from the authorities “as to whether mentioning the caste of every accused is obligatory in a criminal case while registering an FIR”.

The case will now come up for consideration in the second week of March. The direction came on a criminal revision petition filed against the state of Haryana and another respondent by Dharam Raj and another petitioner.

The issue had cropped up before the High Court in June last year also when Justice PB Bajanthri directed Home Secretaries of Chandigarh, Haryana and Punjab to file affidavits. Asserting the disclosure of caste was likely to hamper the investigation and prejudice of officials handling the case, Justice Bajanthri had asked them to specify in the affidavit whether there was any provision, except in the Schedule Caste and Schedule Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, to disclose the caste of the complainant or accused.

“If there are no provisions, why necessary official memorandum or circular be issued to the Police Department?” Justice Bajanthri had said.

The issue was first brought to the High Court’s notice in April 2017 after advocate Hari Chand Arora filed a petition in public interest for directing all investigating officers against mentioning the caste or religion of the accused, victim or witnesses in recovery memos, FIRs, seizure memos, inquest papers and other forms prescribed under the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, as well as the Punjab Police Rules, 1934.

Subsequently, the Bench was informed that the state of Punjab was of the view that mentioning of caste etc. in forms used under the Punjab Police Rules framed in 1934 had no relevance in the present scenario.

Plea first filed in 2017

The issue was first brought to the High Court’s notice in April 2017 after advocate Hari Chand Arora filed a petition in public interest for directing all investigating officers against mentioning the caste or religion of the accused, victim or witnesses in recovery memos, FIRs, seizure memos, inquest papers and other forms prescribed under the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, as well as the Punjab Police Rules, 1934.