Issued Circular On Guidelines For Public Prosecutors' Appointment : State Tells Kerala High Court

The Kerala High Court was on Friday (December 05) informed that a circular has been issued by the Law Secretary of the State regarding guidelines for the appointment of Public Prosecutors.

The Director General of Prosecution submitted that the circular is in consonance with the directions issued in Suo Motu v. State of Kerala and Others.

Noting the development, the Division Bench of Chief Justice Nitin Jamdar and Justice Syam Kumar V.M. asked the counsel for the petitioner and the High Court Administration to examine the same and to convey their opinions.

The Court was seized of a public interest litigation filed by a former public prosecutor alleging that the State has not framed the internal administrative guidelines mandated by the High Court in the afore case. As per the decision, the Court had held that the process for appointing Public Prosecutors must strictly conform to Section 18 of Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and that the opinion of the District Judge must be given primacy during the consultative process.

Accordingly, the Court had earlier passed an interim order in the PIL, directing the State to frame guidelines on appointment of Public Prosecutors under Section 18(3) of the BNSS. The case was posted yesterday for compliance.

The petition was moved by Advocates S.K. Adithyan, Shahina Noushad, Krishna S. Karunakaran, Anu Chandrakumar.

Case Title: Adv. Sudheer P.S. v. State of Kerala and Ors.

Case No: WP(PIL) 152/ 2025