What Are the Ways to File a Criminal Complaint Against Someone in India?
When we talk about criminal cases, it is when a person is convicted of committing a crime and is considered an offense as per the law of the Nation. These Laws can differ from place to place and the same goes with the punishment given to the accused. It is very common for Indians to have less knowledge about the criminal laws in India. So here we are highlighting mainly the circumstances under which a criminal case can be filed against an individual.
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The Criminal Laws of India
There are three different criminal laws in India and they explain the procedure and the punishment for criminal trials:
- Indian Penal Code
- Code Of Criminal Procedure 1973
- Indian Evidence Act 1872.
Criminal Offenses
Following is the list of criminal offenses that are considered as per the Indian Penal Code:
- Offense related to weight and measures
- The offense did against public tranquillity
- Offenses related to elections
- Offenses related to coins and government stamps
- Offenses related to public servants
- The offense did against the welfare and the integrity of the state
- Offenses are done as an attempt to seduce the soldier or an air-force officer or a sailor.
- Offenses related to religions
- The offense did to a human body like murder, kidnapping, physical assault, sexual offenses, etc.
- The offense did to the property like theft, extortion, robbery, cheating, etc.
- The offense done in case of marriage by a husband or his family
Procedure for the criminal trial
The following are the steps of the procedure to file a criminal complaint:
- File an FIR: This is done when you are a victim of a cognizable offense. Here you need to go to the police station and file an FIR. This is a written complaint that the police would write after listening to your grievances. He will then direct you to the District Magistrate for further action to be taken. There are no charges in filing an FIR.
- Investigation: After filing an FIR, the police will then start the investigation and will write everything in their Challan or the charge sheet. If there is enough evidence, then the police will arrest the accused. However, if there is not much proof that the crime is conducted then the police will close the case after justifying the reason in the court. They will also inform the victim about the same.
- Framing the criminal and preparing the charge sheet: If the police have proof of the crime, then they will start preparing the charge sheet for framing the accused. The trial will then begin after this. The accused will be explained the reason for his arrest and the charges applied against him which will help him to decide what to do next.
- Pleading guilty: The accused will be given a chance to plead guilty if it is for free and is done voluntarily. This will help him in getting his punishment reduced and frees him from contesting the case.
- Prosecutor’s evidence to be recorded: The next step is to examine all the evidence of the prosecutor which is necessary for admissibility in the court. They will have to fulfill the conditions mentioned in the Indian Evidence Act 1872.
- Statement of the accused: The accused will be given a chance to talk about his side facts and circumstances.
- Evidence from the Accused: He will be given a chance to represent his side of evidence and witnesses in his support.
- Hearing: The court will give a date to hear both the parties and their arguments
- Judgment: After hearing both the parties, the judge will give his final judgment of either holding the accused guilty or acquitting him of the offense.
To conclude, it is important to understand if the offense of the accused qualifies as a criminal offense. Only then a further procedure needs to be done. You can check with the criminal lawyer Delhi in case you got doubts about this procedure.