The Bombay High Court has strongly criticised the police for showing “utter disregard” for statutory timelines prescribed under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), observing that preliminary enquiries are being conducted for months despite the law mandating their completion within 14 days.
A division bench of Justices Ajay Gadkari and Ranjitsinha Bhonsale, in an order passed last week, said it routinely comes across cases where police personnel conduct preliminary enquiries “leisurely as per their own whims and caprices”, in clear violation of the law.
The court was hearing a petition filed by Kundan Patil through advocate Uday Warunjikar, seeking a direction to the police to register an FIR on his complaint submitted to the Kashimira police station in Mira Road near Mumbai in October.
During the hearing, the Kashimira police informed the court through an affidavit that the enquiry into Patil’s complaint was still underway. The police also stated that a separate complaint had been lodged against the petitioner in August and that an enquiry in that matter was also pending.
Referring to Section 173(3)(i) of the BNSS, the bench pointed out that the provision empowers the police to conduct a preliminary enquiry only within a period of 14 days to ascertain whether a prima facie case exists for proceeding further.
“The police conducts such enquiries for months together under the garb of preliminary enquiry though it is mandated in law that the same has to be conducted within a period of 14 days,” the court said, adding that this reflects “utter disregard” of the legal mandate.
The bench further observed that either the police is unaware that the Government of India enacted the BNSS in July 2024, or it is deliberately not following the mandatory provisions “for reasons best known to them”.
In view of the repeated violations, the High Court said it deemed it appropriate to seek the view of the Union Home Department on whether the provisions of the BNSS are applicable to all police stations and, if so, why they are not being followed “strictly and sincerely”.
The matter has been posted for further hearing on December 19. The court has directed the Additional Solicitor General to appear on behalf of the Union government.
