HC directives call for strict adherence to SC guidelines on remand, arrest

The High Court has directed the authorities to keep tab on monthly conference between magistrates and the police to see whether or not the guidelines relating to arrests under Section 54 of the code of criminal procedures on suspicion and taking the arrested persons on remand by police were being followed.
On May 7, the HC also set a 16-point agenda for the monthly meeting between the magistrates and the police.
The 16-point agenda features 14 guidelines issued by the HC for expeditious investigation and trial of criminal cases.
The 19 guidelines issued by the Appellate Division on May 24, prohibits arresting or detaining people on mere suspicion under Section 54 of the CrPC or the Special Powers Act unless a case or first information report had been filed against the suspects.
SC officials said that 10 of the guidelines were mandatory for the police and the other law enforcements agencies while nine other directives were mandatory for the judicial magistrates and judges to follow when they deal with arrest and detention cases.
The agenda for the magistrate-police conference includes speedy production of witnesses in trial courts by the police and enforcement of warrants and summons.
The agenda set by the HC also made it mandatory for the magistrate-police conference to discuss providing protection to witnesses on the way to courts, while retuning homes as well as on court premises.
The HC also made it mandatory for the magistrate-police conference to discuss impediments in investigating cases and how to remove them, speedy securing medical certificates , postmortem reports , forensic reports as well as viscera reports and the issue of providing security to judges, magistrates and the courtrooms.
The agenda had been set as the Chief Justice during visits to districts noticed that the magistrate police conference being held without agenda for which the guidelines were seldom followed, officials in the Supreme Court Registrar General’s Office told New Age.
HC directives made it mandatory for district magistrates, metropolitan police commissioners, police superintendents, civil surgeons or director or superintendent of government hospitals, jail superintendents, public prosecutors and bar association presidents and general secretaries to attend the monthly magistrate-police conference. 
HC also made it mandatory for 1st class magistrates, senior assistant judges dealing with family disputes as well as officers-in-charge of police stations to attend the magistrate-police conferences to be chaired by chief metropolitan magistrates in metropolises and chief judicial magistrates in district towns.
The HC made it mandatory for holding the magistrate-police conference on 2nd Saturday of each month.
In exigencies, the monthly conference could be held on the 3rd or 4th Saturday.

 

- See more at: http://www.newagebd.net/article/15520/hc-directives-call-for-strict-adherence-to-sc-guidelines-on-remand-arrest#sthash.24ZRUMIV.dpuf