NOUSHAD K Vs. STATE OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This Bail Application is filed under Sec. 482 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023.

(2.) Investigation of a criminal case means investigation of the case of the complainant and the accused. There cannot be any unilateral investigation of the case put up by the complainant alone. Merely because the de facto complainant is a lady, there is no presumption that, in all cases, her versions are gospel truth, and the police can proceed based on her statement without considering the case of the accused. Nowadays, there is a tendency to implicate innocent people in criminal cases with serious allegations of sexual assault. If the police find that the allegations of such women against men are false, they can very well take action against the complainants also. The law permits for the same. But some of the police officers are not ready to take such action, apprehending that it will backfire on them. No such apprehension is necessary. The court will take care of the interest of such officers, if their findings are correct. The damages caused to a citizen because of false implication cannot be compensated by payment of money alone. His integrity, position in the society, reputation, etc, can be ruined by a single false complaint. The police authorities should be alert and vigilant, to find the truth in criminal cases during the investigation stage itself.

(3.) I had occasion to consider a similar situation earlier. In Rohit Krishna v. State of Kerala & Anr. [2023 (6) KHC 249] this court observed like this: