The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court has expressed concern over prolonged delays in police probes across Uttar Pradesh, observing that there is “total lethargy and inaction” on the part of investigating officers in completing investigations.
“The problem is not only confined to one district rather it appears to be prevailing throughout the State of U.P. However, this may not be taken as if we have given final opinion with regard to the malady,” a division bench of Justice Abdul Moin and Justice Pramod Kumar Srivastava remarked recently while hearing a petition seeking transfer of an investigation in a murder case to an independent agency recently.
It also said complainants are repeatedly approaching courts for effective and impartial investigations into FIRs, where investigations continue for months, if not years, without the final report seeing the light of day.
The bench directed the additional chief secretary (home), UP, to file a personal affidavit explaining how the problem of investigations being kept pending for prolonged periods could be addressed.
The affidavit must indicate whether a time frame for completing investigations can be fixed and, if not, how the problem can otherwise be remedied, it said.
{{/usCountry}}The affidavit must indicate whether a time frame for completing investigations can be fixed and, if not, how the problem can otherwise be remedied, it said.
{{/usCountry}}In the current case, an FIR was registered on November 24, 2024, in an alleged murder case for offences under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 and the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
The petitioner submitted that a chargesheet in the case was filed on April 21, 2025. However, the jurisdictional court directed further investigation by the concerned or any other circle officer.
The petitioner contended that despite the direction for further investigation, the matter had been “hanging fire” and the authorities had failed to submit a report before the concerned court.
Hence, the petitioner requested that the probe be transferred to an independent specialised agency, preferably the CB-CID or a court-monitored Special Investigation Team. The state counsel, on the other hand, admitted that a further investigation was underway.
The high court observed that the chargesheet submitted by the police had not found favour with the concerned court, which had prima facie found the investigation to be “unbelievable and unnatural”.
In view of the recurring complaints of delayed investigations, the court directed the additional chief secretary (home) to file a personal affidavit within three weeks. The affidavit must also disclose the number of cases in which information about investigation progress had been communicated to complainants or victims, as required under Section 193 of the BNSS, it directed.
At this stage, the information was confined to FIRs registered in Sultanpur district. The matter has been listed for further hearing on December 8. The court directed if the personal affidavit is not filed, the ACS (home) shall appear in person along with the relevant records to assist the court.