Law commission backs phased e-FIR roll-out

The Law Commission has recommended allowing the filing of online first information reports (FIRs) for cognisable offences in all cases where the accused is unknown and all cognisable offences with a jail term of up to three years where the accused is known. This move, which aims to overcome difficulties in filing FIRs and improve police to public ratio, has been partially implemented in certain states but the commission has recommended expanding the facility. However, experts have raised concerns over practicality and potential misuse of the system.

The Law Commission has recommended allowing the filing of online first information reports (FIRs) for cognisable offences in all cases where the accused is unknown and all cognisable offences with a jail term of up to three years where the accused is known, a move that police experts said was novel but could run into practical difficulties.

The 22nd law commission submitted its report -- Amendment in Section 154 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 for Enabling Online Registration of FIR – to the Union law ministry earlier this week. The report was made public on Friday. (File photo)

According to The Code of Criminal Procedure,1973 cognisable offences are those in which police officers can arrest an accused without a warrant or court permission, and are typically more serious such as murder, rape or abduction. Non-cognisable offences are those in which police officers do not have the authority to arrest without a warrant.

The 22nd law commission submitted its report -- Amendment in Section 154 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 for Enabling Online Registration of FIR – to the Union law ministry earlier this week. The report was made public on Friday.

“In areas where visiting the police station might not be feasible due to security or other infrastructural issues, filing e-FIR may prove to be a boon. Also, filing of e-FIR would help in overcoming reluctance shown by police officers to file FIRs in cases of petty offences. Moreover, it would overcome the difficulties resulting from low police to public ratio,” the commission noted in its 68-page report.

When filing an e-FIR, the complainant does not have to visit the police station and can register their complaint through a mobile app or the police’s online network. Once an FIR is filed, designated investigating officers contact the complainant.

To be sure, the initiative is being implemented partially by police forces in Delhi, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Uttarakhand, but only in non-heinous cases such as theft, reporting lost items and vehicle thefts. The law panel has now recommended expanding this facility.

“The registration of e-FIR be enabled in a phased manner, beginning with offences bearing a punishment of up to three years imprisonment. This would allow the relevant stakeholders to test the efficacy of the proposed system, and at the same time, keep the possible misuse of such a facility to a bare minimum,” the commission said.

“If it is found that the proposed system is indeed working effectively, the ambit of the same can be extended through subsequent amendments,” the recommendations added.

The panel said it consulted different stakeholders such as former police officers, legal experts, officials of the Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPRD) and university professors.

It said registration of e-FIR should be permitted for all cognisable offences where the accused is not known all cognizable offences with punishment up to three years where the accused is known.

“The commission is of the considered opinion that enabling registration of e-FIR would tackle the long persisting issue of delay in registration of FIRs. allowing citizens to report crimes in real time,” the panel noted.

It suggested that states should be allowed to expand the list of offences for which e-FIRs may be registered, but added that for now, expanding the facility to all offences was not possible due to Supreme Court guidelines and ran the risk of increasing the investigative burden on the police.

Retired Indian Police Service (IPS) officer Prakash Singh, who served as the chief of Uttar Pradesh and Assam and whose petition led to landmark police reforms, said the initiative sounded good but only in principle.

“It requires a lot of checks and balance. In India, when the majority of the people file complaints, there is a tendency to exaggerate the contents. They speak to legal experts and exaggerate to put the other person in the maximum discomfort. The police try to downplay what the complainants say. Maybe the government can find a middle ground to have e FIRs only in cases where there is little or almost no scope for complainants to exaggerate,” he said.

Advocate LN Rao, also a former Delhi Police deputy commissioner of police, said e-FIRs should be allowed only in cases that do not require immediate investigation. “More than 7-8 years ago, Delhi Police started registering FIRs in cases of theft or vehicle thefts. Virtual FIR ensures there is no burking of data by police. But there is very little investigation thereafter. If you look at the data on recovery of stolen vehicles, it is very less...Also having e-FIR in cases in which prescribed punishment is up to three years, may not be a good move, particularly in cases of fatal accidents or grievous hurt where urgent investigation and collection of evidence is required.”

Retired IPS officer Yasovardhan Azad, who also served as special director in the Intelligence Bureau, said all police stations do not have the infrastructure yet to handle e-FIRs. “ This is a great initiative but the progress is tardy and we don’t have 100% coverage yet because of financial and other constraints...The real issue is availability of high-grade infrastructure and absorptive capacity.”

According to data provided by ministry of home affairs, there 17,535 police stations in total, of which 628 are operating without a landline, while 285 run without wireless/mobile connection.

The 17,535 stations have 172,168 computers in total, according to the data. However, it is unclear which police stations have more computers and which do not have one.

The Law Commission is a non-statutory body, working under the aegis of the Union ministry of law and justice. Following definite terms of reference from the department of legal affairs, the commission conducts research in the field of law and makes recommendations to the Centre in the form of reports. These recommendations are not binding on the government, though they may have some persuasive value.

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