Send SMS/WhatsApp To Rowdy Sheeter When Appearance Is Needed For Enquiry, Don't Summon Orally: Karnataka High Court To Police

The Karnataka High Court has partly allowed a petition filed by rowdy sheeter Sunil Kumar alias Silent Sunil, who sought a direction to all officers of the Karnataka State Police Department to issue a notice to him whenever his appearance is needed for the purpose of enquiry or investigation.Justice R. Nataraj said, “So long as the petitioner does not involve in the commission of any offence and is not suspected of being involved in a crime, the Police shall not summon him orally only on the ground that his name appears in the rowdy list.” "Whatever might be the consequences, when there is no procedure prescribed in law to summon a rowdy sheeter, the respondent-State cannot justify summoning them orally and detaining them in the Police station for long hours as that would infringe their personal liberty,” the court said.The court added that till the State brings in any law prescribing the procedure for securing the presence of a rowdy sheeter, the petitioner shall furnish a mobile number before the Police Stations where rowdy sheets are registered against him, and the Police can inform him by sending a Short Message Service (SMS) or WhatsApp message to visit the police station for obtaining information about his activities. If, despite sending an SMS or a WhatsApp message, the petitioner fails to present himself before the Police, they may visit his house for enquiry or surveillance.The petitioner had approached the court contending that out of the 24 cases filed against him by various Police Stations, all the cases had either ended in acquittal or the proceedings impugned therein were quashed by the Court. Except for the rowdy sheet, there are no pending cases against him.Further, the respondents, under the guise of keeping a watch on the petitioner, are orally summoning him and abusing him apart from detaining him without any cause. Moreover, there is no procedure either in the Karnataka Police Manual or in the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 prescribing the manner of summoning a person whose name appears in the rowdy list. Nonetheless, the respondents are in the habit of summoning the petitioner orally.The police opposed the plea, submitting that surveillance of the petitioner was conducted as per Clause 2 of Standing Order No. 1003 dated 27.07.2013. It is the duty of the Police to keep an eye on rowdy sheeters, their followers, henchmen, goondas, bootleggers, and to collect information from various sources about their activities and businesses. They contended that the petitioner, masquerading as a social worker, is trying to demoralize the police officials by filing frivolous cases.Further, there are 6,540 rowdies in Bengaluru City, and prescribing any procedure for summoning them would cause problems for maintenance of law and order, disturb the general public, and may lead to anarchy. “At the most, this Hon'ble Court may direct the State of Karnataka to frame rules and regulations,” it was submitted.Finally, it was argued that since there are no Rules or procedures for summoning a rowdy sheeter, the practice has been that whenever the presence of a rowdy sheeter is needed, he would be orally summoned by the concerned Police, and after enquiry, he would be sent back. This, it was argued, does not offend the rights of the petitioner in any manner whatsoever.The Bench noted that it is in the interest of everyone that serious offences/cognizable offences are prevented at the earliest or are effectively investigated and that accused persons are brought to book. It said, “However, while doing so, the State and its instrumentalities should be fair to everyone concerned.”It was observed that the petitioner has not denied the fact that his name appears in the Rowdy Register and that he was accused in nearly 24 cases involving heinous offences. It is undisputed that the petitioner is acquitted in 22 cases involving serious offences ranging from murder to dacoity.The Court said, “Additional Government Advocate has categorically stated in the statement of objections that there is no provision either in the Karnataka Police Act, 1963 or the Karnataka Police Manual which prescribes the procedure for summoning a person whose name is entered in the Rowdy Register.”Following this, the Court said, “Therefore, unless there is a procedure in law prescribed to secure the presence of a rowdy, the same would fall foul of Article 21 of the Constitution of India. This Court is not oblivious of the position of law that a mere entry of a person's name in the Rowdy Register does not deprive his/her fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution of India though in respect of convicts, their rights are restricted. The right under Article 21 of the Constitution of India is not only guaranteed to citizens but also non-citizens making it potent and a formidable shield against any excesses by the State Government.”Accordingly, it held, “Therefore, this Court has no hesitation in holding that so long as there is no procedure...

Send SMS/WhatsApp To Rowdy Sheeter When Appearance Is Needed For Enquiry, Don't Summon Orally: Karnataka High Court To Police

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