 Please subscribe to this YouTube channel mentor. Talk and do press bell button for notifications. Hello friends! I received several requests from viewers, mostly civil services aspirants, wanting to know about the meaning, nature, scope and concept of an FIR. First information report. So, let us discuss today the FACTUM of an FIR. First information report, which expression is used very commonly, but not understood, mind it, in proper terms of law. Well, FIR represents the first information given to the concerned police station by the victim personally or by any other person having knowledge about commission of a cognizable offense. And what is a cognizable offense? Well, an offense where the police is empowered, where the police is empowered to arrest a person without a warrant. That's cognizable offense. There is no, you know, statutory meaning or a prescribed format for filing of an FIR or let us say, you know, intimation about an offense. I mean, it could be done verbally or in writing or virtually by by an email or a phone call, etc. As many of you would be aware already that now most states have provisioned for filing online FIRs through the designated websites. However, section 154 of the criminal procedure code CRPC 1973 deals with some aspects of information in cognizable cases. And that's a fundamental section. Subsection 1 says of 154, every information relating to the commission of a cognizable offense, if given orally to an officer in charge of a police station, shall be reduced in writing by him or under his direction and be read over to the informant and every such information, whether given in writing or reduced to writing as aforesaid shall be signed by the person giving it. And the substance thereof shall be entered in a book to be kept by such officer in such form as the state government may prescribe in this behalf. Now here let me also appraise you that that in the eventuality in the eventuality or in the case, let's say or a situation where the victim or the informant of an offense is intermittently or perpetually incapacitated or disabled or handicapped. The police officer concerned in that event shall be under an obligation to record the FIR by visiting the concerned victim or informant who's incapacitated to come personally. Further with regard to the alleged offense against women such as causing grievous hurt by use of acid, criminal assault on women, sexual offenses relating to women, rape, etc. Outraging modesty under the Indian court, the information in respect thereof shall be recorded only by a woman police officer. Yes. Now let us go to section 154 subsection 2. A copy of the information as recorded under subsection 1, that's what subsection 2 says, shall be given forthwith free of cost to the informant. Yes, informant is entitled to free copy of the FIR. Subsection 3, any person aggrieved by a refusal on the part of an officer in charge of a police station to record the information referred to in subsection 1, may send the substance of such information in writing and by post, mind it, to the superintendent of police concerned who, if satisfied that such information discloses the commission of a cognisable offense, shall either investigate the case himself or direct an investigation to be made by any police officer subordinate to him, in the manner provided by this code and such officer shall have all the powers of an officer in charge of the police station in relation to that offense. So, you know, where an officer refuses or the police station refuses to lodge an FIR, one could write to the superintendent of police and he on satisfying himself with regard to the offense being cognisable can lodge an FIR and investigate himself or direct subordinate officer to do so. Now, although the police station is obligated to lodge an FIR in any alleged cognisable offense, but where it chooses not to or delays it, the victim or the informant can file a complaint under the criminal procedure code before the magistrate having jurisdiction in the respect of that matter. And the magistrate can in turn direct registration of an FIR. However, I may apprise you that the settle law is that magistrate is a court of law and has to apply judicious judicial mind before directing lodging of an FIR. So every matter has to be examined on the strength of the facts and the law concerned and it is not a matter of right for a complainant to get a direction in his favor. The moment he or she files a complaint with the magistrate, you know, the court magistrates court has to apply its mind from the judicial perspective. Now here. I remember an important judgment of the Indian Supreme Court. Let me refer that judgment to you. You know, in Lalitha Kumari versus government of UP in 2014, the constitution bench of the Supreme Court of India ruled very important judgment in respect of section 154. It ruled that the registration of FIR, the registration of FIR is mandatory under section 154 of the code. If the information if the information discloses commission of a cognizable offense and no preliminary inquiry is permissible in such a situation. Yes. If the information received does not disclose a cognizable offense, but indicates the necessity for an inquiry. A preliminary inquiry may be conducted only to ascertain only to ascertain whether the cognizable offense is disclosed or not in that information. So going back to the specifics of an FIR, you know, ordinarily the FIR is lodged at the police station in whose territorial jurisdiction the alleged offense has been committed. That's logic. Now there is a provision for a zero FIR as well for the convenience of the victim, which can be, you know, filed in any jurisdiction, not withstanding where the offense has been actually committed. But after recording the FIR, the police station shall forthwith transfer the said zero FIR to the relevant police station having jurisdiction over the said matter. So I mean, you could lodge FIR anywhere in the country, but it has to eventually go to the jurisdiction, jurisdictional police station. Now section 154 of CRPC is basically a trigger point for investigation and any statements, you know, made therein by the informant or the witnesses are not conclusive for conviction. The Supreme Court in Nara Paddy Raju versus state of Andhra Pradesh held while acquitting a rape accused that the conviction of an accused, that the conviction of an accused cannot be based solely on a statement of the witness or witnesses recorded by the police under section 161 or 154 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Section 161, you know, deals with the examination of witnesses, whereas 154 you already know by now it's about FIRs. It's about FIRs. Well, that is all for now. Hope I was able to explain to you in simple terms the factum of FIR. Let's catch up again with another topic of your interest.