1. PRE-TRIAL
PROCEEDINGS IN
CRIMINAL CASE
Ghulam Hamid
Civil judge-cum-Judicial Magistrate

2. Humans, no doubt,
are social animal, but
they are selfish too.
Living in a society with
different interests
might give rise to
differences. These
differences may lead
to aggression.

3. To prevent Unrest in the society, there must be a
system having authority with the aim to maintain
peace and harmony in it. State has the objective
to provide protection to life and property of
citizens and to ensure order in the society. The
state law has created forums for this purpose.
The law enforcing agencies and courts are the
pillars whereby the rights of citizens are meant
to be protected.

4. The rule is simple; whenever
anyone violates any law, the
law enforcing agency will
arrest him and bring him
before the court of law. A civil
judge or judicial magistrate,
being the court according to
clause 2(a) of the Qanun e
Shahadat, must be familiar
with the stages, process and
the law dealing with the
persons allegedly involves in
violation of law. The following
schematic pattern will show
us the areas, courts need to
know before dealing with an
accused.

5. occurrenc
e
victim/complainan
t
reportinvestigation
production of
accused to
court

7. Occurrence
 The first step to know in a criminal case is, the
occurrence. The court has to see as to whether, the
alleged occurrence is only violation of law without
victimizing any human, animal and property or beside
violation of law, it affected anyone/anything. For
example, if the accused has violated any traffic law
without damaging anything else or it injured an
individual, animal and damaged some property too.
On the other perspective if anyone is reported to be
dead then it has to be seen either it is a homicide or a
suicide. In this eventuality, the court has to see
whether there is any complainant of the occurrence or
not. It could be the victim, legal heirs of the victim or
anyone acquainted with facts.

8. Stages of criminal case.
 In general, parlance, a criminal case in Pakistan has
four stages:
 pre-investigation stage,
 investigation stage,
 pre-trial stage and
 trial stage.
 Law is set into motion by First Information Report
(FIR). It follows investigation. A report upon
completion upon investigation is submitted before the
court. The court decides for the disposal of report. If
the Court deems it fit for trial, it takes cognizance of
the offence. Then the trial commences with framing of
charge.

10. Investigation
means collection of
evidence in respect of a
crime. Its main purpose
is to ensure that no one
is suffered unless there
is case against him.
Chapter XIV of the
criminal procedure code
1898 and chapter 25
police rules deals with
procedure and
guidelines of police
investigation.

11. PART V - INFORMATION TO THE POLICE
AND THEIR POWERS TO INVESTIGATE -
CHAPTER XIV
Whenever any violation of
law is reported to police, the
station house officer will see
the contents of report and will
derive from it the nature of
the offence. If it is a
cognizable offence, the First
Information Report (FIR)
under section 154, Code of
Criminal Procedure, 1898 will
be lodged. The complainant
generally makes it or
someone acquainted with
facts of the case. Its objective
is to obtain first information
about commission of any
criminal act and to record the
same at earliest.

12.  In case non-cognizable offences, the police by virtue
of section 155, Cr.P.C., will be required to obtain
permission from Magistrate by making an entry into
concerned book as per police rules and refer the
informant to magistrate concerned. When the
magistrate allow the police, then the matter will be
investigated. In non-cognizable case they can neither
register a case under section 154, Cr.P.C. nor can
they arrest the accused without a warrant. Once
magistrate gives permission, police may carry the
investigation in the same manner as if the offence was
cognizable except that the arrest without warrant shall
not be made. Only Schedule II attached to criminal
procedure code provides that which offences are
cognizable and which are non-cognizable.

13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
section offenc
es
Whether
the police
may
arrest
without
warrant
or not
Whether a
warrant or
a summon
shall
ordinarily
be issued
in the first
instance.
Wheth
er
bailable
or not
whether
compoun
da ble or
not
Punishment
under the
PPC
By what Court
triable

14.  Section 172, Cr.P.C. requires every police officer
making an investigation to enter his day by day
proceedings in investigation in a diary. Such
diaries may help the Court in the inquiry or trial
but such cannot be used in evidence. The
accused or counsels shall not be entitled to call
for the diaries except in the situation where the
Court uses such diaries for contradicting such
police officer. Lodging of a First Information
Report (F.I.R.) or registration of a criminal case
does not require arrest of a person at once. If
there is sufficient evidence to connect the
accused with crime then only he can be arrested.
172. Diary of proceedings in investigation.

15.  Section 172. Every police-officer making an investigation
under this Chapter shall day by day enter his
proceedings in the investigation in a diary, setting forth
the time at which the information reached him, the time
at which he began and closed his investigation, the place
or places visited by him, and a statement of the
circumstances ascertained through his investigation. (2)
Any Criminal Court, may send for the police-diaries of a
case under inquiry or trial in such Court, and may use
such diaries not as evidence in the case, but to aid it in
such inquiry or trial. Neither the accused nor his agents
shall be entitled to call for such diaries, nor shall he or
they be entitled to see them merely because they are
referred to by the Court; but if they are used by the
police-officer who made them, to refresh his memory, if
the Court uses them for the purpose of contradicting
such police-officer the provisions of the Evidence Act,
1872 section 161 section 145 as the case may be, shall
apply.

16.  By virtue of Sec.59, a private person and under
section 65 CrPC a Magistrate may himself arrest
or order any person to arrest the offender who
commits offence in presence of the Magistrate
within local limits of his jurisdiction. The police will
produce the accused before a Magistrate within
twenty-four hours under all circumstances of his
arrest. If a person arrested or taken into custody is
not produced within twenty-four hours before a
Magistrate, his custody is deemed to be illegal
any without lawful authority. Section 61, Cr.P.C.
limits the powers of police with regard to detention
of an accused.

17.  Section 59. Arrest by private persons and
procedure on such arrest. (1) Any private
person may arrest any person who in his
view commits a non-bailable and
cognizable offence, or any proclaimed
offender, and without unnecessary delay,
shall make over any person so arrested to
a police-officer or, in the absence of a
police-officer, take such person or causes
him to be taken in custody to the nearest
police-station.

18.  Section 65. Arrest by or in presence of
Magistrate. Any Magistrate may at any time
arrest or direct the arrest, in his presence,
within the local limits of his jurisdiction, of
any person for whose arrest he is
competent at the time and in the
circumstances to issue a warrant.

19.  If it appears that investigation
of a case cannot be
completed within twenty-four
and the investigating officer is
of opinion that the custody of
the arrested accused is
required for the purpose of
investigation, he may seek
police custody/ police remand
of the accused up-to fifteen
days.
 Accused cannot be remanded
to police custody in bailable
offences. He can’t be sent to
judicial custody except in one
condition where he is unable
to furnish surety bond.

20.  The section 167(5), Cr.P.C. provides that a
woman cannot be remanded to police custody
except when she is involved in cases of qatal or
dacoity. The Sec. 9(5) of the juvenile justice
system ordinance, 2000 provides that when a
child under fifteen years of age is arrested or
detained for an offence, which is punishable for
less than ten years, he shall be treated as if he
were accused of commission of a bailable
offence. In a cases, where Magistrate thinks the
case is not fit for remanding accused to police
custody and he shall send the accused to judicial
custody in light to provision laid down under
section 344, Cr.P.C.

21.  167. Procedure when investigation cannot be completed
in twenty-four hours. (1) Whenever any person is
arrested and detained in custody, and it appears that the
investigation cannot be completed within the period of
twenty-tour hours fixed by section 61, and there are
grounds for believing that the accusation or information
is well-founded, the officer incharge of the police-station
or the police-officer making the investigation if he is not
below the rank of sub-inspector shall forthwith transmit
to the [nearest Magistrate] a copy of the entries in the
diary hereinafter prescribed relating to the case, and
shall at the same time forward the accused to such
Magistrate.
 [Explanation:- For this purpose of this section, in the
cases triable by the Executive magistrates, the
expression 'nearest Magistrate' means the Executive
Magistrate and in all other cases, the Judicial
Magistrate.]

22.  (2) The Magistrate to whom an accused person is
forwarded under this section may, whether he has
or has not jurisdiction to try the case from time to
time authorize the detention of the accused in
such custody as such Magistrate thinks fit, for a
term not exceeding fifteen days in the whole. If he
has not jurisdiction to try the case or [send] it for
trial, and considers further detention unnecessary,
he may order the accused to be forwarded to a
Magistrate having such jurisdiction: Provided that
no Magistrate of the third class, and no Magistrate
of the second class not specially empowered in
this behalf by the Provincial Government shall
authorize detention in the custody of the police.

23.  (3) A Magistrate authorizing under this
section detention in the custody of the
police shall record his reasons for so
doing.
 [(4) The Magistrate giving such order shall
forward a copy of his order, with his
reasons for making it, to the Sessions
Judge.]

24.  [(5) Notwithstanding anything contained in sections 60 and 61 or
hereinbefore to the contrary, where the accused forwarded under
subsection (2) is a female, the Magistrate shall not, except in the
cases involving Qatl or dacoity supported by reasons to be recorded
in writing, authorize the detention of the accused in police custody,
and the police officer making in investigation shall interrogate the
accused referred to in subsection (1) in the prison in the presence of
an officer of jail and a female police officer.
 (6) The officer incharge of the prison shall make appropriate
arrangements for the admission of the investigating police officer into
the prison for the purpose of interrogating the accused.
 (7) If for the purpose of investigation, it is necessary that the accused
referred to in subsection (1) be taken out of the prison, the officer
incharge of the police station or the police officer making
investigation not below the rank of Sub-Inspector, shall apply to the
Magistrate in that behalf and the Magistrate may, for the reasons to be
recorded in writing, permit taking of accused out of the prison in the
company of a female police officer appointed by the Magistrate:
Provided that the accused shall not be kept out of the prison while in
the custody of the police between sunset and sunrise.']

25.  When an accused is produced before a magistrate and he is
required to be produced before a Court of Magistrate of
another district, then the court will grant transit police custody
remand after fulfilment of the procedure for transfer of the
accused. The provision for transit remand is found in sections
85 read with 86.
 Section 63 read with 167, Cr.P.C. empowers a Magistrate to
make a special order for discharging an arrested person by
way of bond if it is found that such person was arrested
without justification. Order of discharge is not order of
acquittal.
 The Court of magistrate may issue search warrant under
section 96, Cr.P.C. for search of a house, if upon information
or inquiry, he has reason to believe that such place is used
for the deposit or sale of stolen property.

26.  A Magistrate is also empowered to issue search
warrant for recovery of a person believes to be
wrongfully confined and such confinement amounts to
an offence. If the person to whom such warrant is
directed, finds the wrongfully confined person for
whom such warrant is intended, he shall immediately
take the person to the Magistrate for appropriate
orders.
 A magistrate can record statement of anyone under
section 164 CrPC and confession of the accused
under section 164 and 364 CrPC after observing the
legal formalities.
 Similarly the magistrate under article 22 of the Qanun
e Shahadat can conduct identification parade of the
culprits or things.

27.  The magistrate can release a person on bail
subject to provisions of criminal code of
procedure.
 The magistrate can also order for the custody of
property normally called superdari at pre trial
stage.
 Under section 174, CrPC the police has to report
the sudden violent and unnatural death to
magistrate concerned.
 Under section 176 CrPC the magistrate will have
to inquire into cause of death when a person dies
in the custody of police. For the purpose of this
section and section 174 CrPC, the magistrate may
direct for disinterment and examination of the
dead body.

28. Questions?

29. Thank you