The Rajasthan High Court has emphasized that a Sessions Court has the authority to initiate legal proceedings against individuals accused of a crime, even if they haven't been formally charged by the police and without adhering strictly to the procedural stage outlined in Section 319 of the Criminal Procedure Code.

The single-bench of Justice Anoop Kumar Dhand, concluded that the Additional Sessions Court appropriately exercised its original jurisdiction by initiating proceedings against the remaining accused under Section 193 of the Criminal Procedure Code subsequent to the case's committal by the Magistrate.

“….it is clear from the authoritative judgments of Hon'ble Apex Court…. that the Court of Sessions is empowered to take cognizance against those accused persons under Section 193 CrPC who have been left by the police and who have not been arrayed as accused by the Investigating Agency with the charge-sheet”, the court observed in its order.

The court reached the conclusion after  relying on the decisions in Dharam Pal & Ors. v. State of Haryana & Ors. 2014 (3) SCC 306, Balveer Singh v. State of Rajasthan (2016) 6 SCC 680, and Nahar Singh v. The State of Uttar Pradesh & Anr. 2022.

While dismissing the criminal revision petition brought forth by the accused, the court mentioned that the Additional Sessions Judge committed an irregularity by taking cognizance again with respect to those 6 accused against whom cognizance was already taken by the Magistrate. Nonetheless, the bench in Jaipur mentioned that such irregularity does not come within the ambit of 'an illegality which vitiates the proceedings against the petitioners under Section 461 CrPC'

Initially, the police had filed a charge sheet against six individuals, and the magistrate duly took cognizance of the charges against all six in 2013. Subsequently, the case was transferred to the Court of Additional Sessions Judge, where once again, cognizance was taken against the same six accused individuals for the identical offenses.

Subsequently, during the stage of framing charges, the complainant filed an application under Section 193 of the Criminal Procedure Code seeking cognizance against the remaining individuals allegedly involved in the crime. This application was granted by the Additional Sessions Judge in 2018.

The criminal revision has been filed by the newly implicated accused, who were not part of the original charge sheet, and against whom fresh cognizance was taken in 2018. Cognizance was taken against the petitioners for offenses under Sections 147, 148, 341, 323, 325, 308, and 149 of the Indian Penal Code.