Senior officers monitor sexual offence cases from FIR till probe completion, police tells HC

There is no need for a district-wise Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe sexual offence cases, as sought in a PIL for speedy disposal of such matters, since they are monitored by senior officers right from the FIR registration stage till the conclusion of probe, the police has told the Delhi High Court.

Delhi Police, in an affidavit filed before a bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice C Hari Shankar, has said it was "fully cognizant of the serious and grievous nature" of sexual offences and it has been doing its utmost to ensure that investigation in such cases is handled in an "efficient and time bound manner".

It has further said that a committee of senior officers under the Special Commissioner of Police had deliberated on the issues raised in the PIL by NGO Delhi Citizen Forum for Civil Rights and decided that such cases "from the time of registration of FIR would be monitored by senior officers of the district" where the crime has been committed.

The agency has also said that section 173 (1A) of the Code of Criminal Procedure provides that investigation in relation to sexual offences under the Indian Penal Code be completed within two months from the date on which information was recorded by the officer in charge of a police station.

The affidavit by Delhi Police was filed in response to the PIL which has sought setting up of fast track courts to deal with sexual offences, laying down a time limit for completing trial in such cases, a different department in the Forensic Sciences Laboratory (FSL) for evidence collection and a district-wise SIT to probe such matters.

The FSL has also filed an affidavit in response to the PIL and it has said that the head of its office had on November 5 ordered that reports with regard to biological samples in sexual offences under IPC be ready in 45 days and in those under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act be completed in 30 days.

The lab has also said that in accordance with a Supreme Court order of July 25, a separate working unit called the 'DNA POCSO Unit' for dealing with POCSO cases was created on September 17.

Taking the affidavits on record, the bench listed the matter for hearing on March 18, 2020.