Sixteen years after a gross miscarriage of justice claimed the life of Ruchika Girhotra, the Ministry of Home Affairs has directed that all police complaints be treated as First Information Report (FIRs). Though belated, this is a step, which if implemented diligently, could beef up the criminal justice system greatly. No matter which section of society you come from, a visit to a police station to file an FIR can be a challenging experience. The challenge becomes tougher if the complainant happens to come from the wrong side of the social divide or if it's about a rape case. Policemen are known to delay the filing of an FIR — sometimes as long as nine years as in the Girhotra case — often using the ruse that they are "looking" into the merits of the case. And the Girhotra case is not the only one: the Bhanwari Devi rape case, the Nithari case and the latest road accident involving a Gurgaon-based IT professional, all prove that the first step towards nailing the accused is the most abused in our policing and justice delivery system.
According to the ministry, the Station House Officers must also state their reasons for filing an FIR or not registering one to their senior officials. Registering an FIR, unlike say just entry in a police diary, means the onus would be on the police to report the case to a magistrate, investigate, arrest, chargesheet and prosecute the accused. Delays in filing an FIR have often led to the loss of evidence, which could have been be used to nail the accused. In rape cases, the speedy filing of an FIR becomes all the more important because even a 24-hour delay could mean loss of biological evidence. Recently, A Right to Information plea found out that less than 12 per cent of rape complaints are turned into FIRs.
However, the compulsory filing of an FIR should not be seen as an end in itself. A progressive move like this needs to be supplemented and that can only be done if the government takes strong measures to improve the quality of investigation, reduce the time factor needed to close a case and lessen political interference in the forces. More often than not, onlookers are allowed to swarm the scene of a crime and tamper with evidence. It is true that there could be a glut in FIRs now and our already stretched police force (as of now there are 300,000 vacancies) could find it difficult to marshal its resources. Yet, this cannot be used as an excuse to not file FIRs. The move is an appropriate first step. But the challenge lies in building on it.
