LOST IN PAPER | HC orders Registry to fix haphazard case files

Srinagar, Feb 13: The High Court of J&K and Ladakh Tuesday directed its registry to ensure all cases in which criminal appeals have to be heard and decided by it, paper books are properly prepared as excessive time is wasted in just trying to locate relevant documents from the trial court.

A bench of Justice Atul Sreedharan and Justice Moksha Khajuria Kazmi observed that despite its order dated November 9, 2023, passed in Criminal Appeal No 9900007/2017, the paper books were not prepared in the manner directed by the court.

The court requested the Registrar Judicial to pay special attention to the order and ensure that in all criminal appeals to be decided, paper books are properly prepared and placed before it.

“The same paper book that is available to the bench is also available to the respective counsel for both the sides,” it said. “Experience has shown that excessive time is wasted in just trying to locate the relevant documents from the trial court record which would otherwise be obviated if the paper books are prepared in the manner required in the aforementioned order.”

In its order dated November 9, 2023, the court had observed, “In case after case, the parties disclose that the paper books have not been prepared and handed over and in cases where the paper books are prepared, there are in a haphazard manner and without any sequence.”

While the court had directed that in all criminal matters, the paper book would be prepared by placing among others the FIR first, it had said: “If there is an inquest proceeding on account of the cause of death not being known, then the proceedings in the inquest 174 proceedings should form the next set of documents.”

“Thereafter, the medico-legal certificate, if there was an examination by the doctor of the victim while he was alive or in cases under Section 307 followed by a post-mortem report, if any,” the court had said.

It said that thereafter the 27 memorandum of the accused and the seizure memorandum would come next.

“Thereafter, the FSL reports should be the document to be placed in the paper book and finally the further chargesheet,” the court had ordered.

It said that the next memo of arrest be placed and following that the court testimony of all the witnesses, prosecution witnesses first, thereafter 342 and 313 statement of the accused to be followed by the statement of defence witnesses, if any, and lastly the impugned judgment of the court.

The court had said: “Clear and legible copies of all these documents shall be arranged in the sequence mentioned hereinabove and they shall be bound in the form of the paper book with an index on top giving the pagination of each of these documents.”