Cuttack, Oct. 5: Orissa High Court today ruled that an accused person could be given an FIR copy by the police if he asked for it.

The division bench of Chief Justice V. Gopala Gowda and Justice S.K. Mishra directed the Odisha police administration to ensure that the accused persons or their kin were given an FIR copy within 24 hours of registration from January 31, 2013. It also directed the police to upload FIRs on their website within 24 hours of registration from that date.

Forty-eight-year-old Arun Kumar Budhia, a high court lawyer, filed the PIL, seeking direction to the Odisha government to furnish the FIR copy being registered by the police to the accused persons or their relatives.

Budhia had also sought direction to the Odisha police to upload the FIRs on their website. There was also delay in getting an FIR copy at the magistrate level, the PIL contended.

Under the current provisions of Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), only a magistrate can give a copy of the FIR to the accused.

The CrPC has no provision to supply the FIR copy to the accused on registration at the police station.

The PIL had sought the court’s intervention against the procedure on the ground that it prevents the accused from planning his defence before arrest or being produced before a magistrate on arrest.

The court directed the magistrates across Odisha to provide the FIR copy to the accused within two days. Direction was further issued to the High Court Registry to notify the order to the Odisha government, police administration and all subordinate courts.

The court expected formation of committees consisting of three high police officials at the district level within eight weeks to look into complaints regarding supply of the FIR copies at the police stations.

Grievances related to it are to be lodged with the superintendent of police or the police commissioner of the complainants’ respective districts.

The court endorsed the petitioner’s contention that right to life and personal liberty of the accused got defeated in the absence of the FIR copy as the accused did not get to know the nature of allegations levelled against him to approach before the appropriate forum for obtaining necessary relief.

Citing the plight of the accused while trying to obtain anticipatory bail or regular bail, the petition said the accused had to satisfy and prove his innocence in the court before which such application was filed.

“But to establish his innocence or fact stated in the FIR to be incorrect, it is the prime necessity of the accused to know its contents. Hence, the accused is prevented of his valuable right to protection of life and personal liberty vis-à-vis right to protection against detention and arrest guaranteed under the constitution,” the PIL contended.