Section 197 CrPC | Official Duty and Excessive Force Are Not Mutually Exclusive When Assessing Prosecution Sanction: Kerala High Court Quashes Criminal Proceedings Against Sub-Inspector

The Kerala High Court has quashed criminal proceedings against a Sub-Inspector of Police, Joy K.C., who was accused of wrongful restraint, verbal abuse, and causing hurt while enforcing a breath analyzer test. Justice G. Girish, in a judgment dated March 10, 2025, ruled that the prosecution of a public servant for actions taken in the course of duty requires prior sanction under Section 197(1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC).

The case arose from an incident on May 27, 2012, when the petitioner, then Sub-Inspector at Munambam Police Station, allegedly manhandled a person who refused to submit to a breath analyzer test. The complainant, who later passed away, had alleged that the officer grabbed his shirt, hit him, and forcibly took him into custody while using abusive language.

The Magistrate's court had dismissed the officer’s petition for discharge, holding that the alleged acts were not part of his official duty and, therefore, prosecution sanction was not required. The High Court, however, disagreed with this finding.

Observing that the officer was engaged in his lawful duty of maintaining public order, the Court stated, "It is true that the petitioner had no authority to manhandle the complainant, but at the same time, he had legal authority to arrest him for refusing the breath analyzer test. Any alleged excess in the use of force does not automatically strip the act of its official character."

Relying on precedents such as State of Orissa v. Ganesh Chandra Jew and Devinder Singh v. State of Punjab, the Court held that the Magistrate erred in taking cognizance of the case without the necessary prosecution sanction. The ruling emphasized that, "A public servant should not be made to face criminal proceedings for acts reasonably connected to their official duty unless prior sanction is obtained from the competent authority."

The Court concluded that the entire prosecution was vitiated by the lack of sanction and quashed the proceedings in C.C.No.1368/2015 pending before the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court, Njarakkal.

Date of Decision: March 10, 2025