EMPOWERING LEGAL AWARENESS

EMPOWERING LEGAL AWARENESS

XXX v. State of Kerala & Ors.

Criminal Appeal · 2026 INSC 88Decided 27 Jan 2026

Criminal Appeal No. 4629 of 2025

Justice Dipankar Datta · Justice Manmohan

Background

A woman alleged sexual assault by three police officers during a property-dispute matter. A Magistrate, under Section 175(4) BNSS, called for a superior officer's report rather than ordering an FIR outright; the appellant sought a writ directing FIR registration.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court held Section 175(4)'s complaint (against a public servant) must be in writing and affidavit-backed, like sub-section (3) requires: a bare oral complaint isn't enough. It also held the writ court exceeded its jurisdiction by granting relief never actually requested, and left the Magistrate's ongoing process (with notice to the accused officers) to continue.

Lesson Learnt

Complaints against public servants under BNSS Section 175(4) must be written and affidavit-backed; courts generally won't bypass the Magistrate's process through a writ petition, especially for relief never actually sought.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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