AI Structured Summary
Not yet generated for this judgment
Judgment
Rama Jois, J.-In all these writ petitions the petitioners have questioned the notification issued by the State Government under sub-section (1) of Section 13 of the Suppression of Immoral Traffic in Women and Girls Act, 1956 (''the Act'' for short) designating the police officers specified in the said notification as Special Police Officers for the areas specified in the corresponding entry.
The plea of the petitioners is as follow: In view of the provisions of sub-section (1) of Section "13 of the Act, only a Police Officer designated as a Special Police Officer by the State Government, has the authority and power to investigate into the offences alleged to have been committed, which fall within the description of ''Offence'' under the Act. The clear meaning xxx of sub-section (1) of Sec. 13 is, that in respect of any particular area not more than one Police Officer xxxx could be appointed as Special Police Officer particularly in view of the words a Special Police Officer". In order to substantiate the point, the learned counsel invited my attention to the impugned notification. The same reads:
"HOME SECRETARIAT
Notification No. HD 130 PCR 86
Bangalore, dated 18th September 1986
In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (1) of Section 13 of the Suppression of Immoral Traffic in Women and Girls Act, 1956 (Central Act 104 of 1956) read with Section 21 of the General Clauses Act, 1897 (Central Act X of 1897), the Government of Karnataka hereby amends the Notification No. HD 176 PCR 78, dated 6th December 1978 as follows:
In the Schedule of the said Notification, for the entries relating to Sl. Nos. 1 to 6 the following entries shall be substituted, namely:
Sl. No.
Deputy Commissioner of Police, Law and Order (East), Bangalore. East Division comprising of Ulsoor gate, Basavanagudi, Ulsoor, Frazer Town and Central.
Deputy Commissioner of Police, Law and Order (West), Bangalore. West Division comprising the Divisions of Malleswaram, Yeswanthapuram, Seshadripuram, Chickpet and Kengerigate.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime), Bangalore. The area coming under the Commissioner of Police, Bangalore City.
Assistant Commissioner of Police, Special Squad, Bangalore. The areas coming under the Commissioner of Police, Bangalore City.
Assistant Commissioner of Police, Ulsoorgate Division, Bangalore. Ulsoorgate Division comprising Police Stations, Ulsoorgate, S.J. Park, S.R. Nagar, Ashoknagar, Wilson Garden, Madiwala, Koramangala, Audugodi and MICO Layout.
Asst. Commissioner of Police, Basavanagudi Division. Basavanagudi Division comprising of Police Stations, Basavanagudi, Siddapura, Tilaknagar, Thyagarajanagar, Jayanagar, J.P. Nagar and Subramanyapura.
6A. Asst. Commissioner of Police, Ulsoor Division. Ulsoor Division comprising of Police Stations, Ulsoor, Viveknagar, HAL, Airport, Indiranagar, Byyappanahalli, Krishnarajapura, Mahadevapura and Jeevanbhimanagar.
6B. Asst. Commissioner of Police, Frazer Town Division. Frazer Town Division comprising of Police Stations, Frazer Town, Kadugondanahalli, Banasawadi, Devarajeevanahalli, Commercial Street, Bharathinagar, Shivajinagar, Bowring & Lady Curzon Hospital.
6C. Asst. Commissioner of Police, Central Division. Central Division comprising of Police Stations, Central, Victoria Hospital, New Tharagupet, Shankarapura, Chamarajpet, Hanumanthanagar, Gavipuram Guttahalli and Girinagar.
6D. Asst. Commissioner of Police, Malleswaram Division. Malleswaram Division comprising of Police Stations, Malleswaram, Srirampuram, Sadashivanagar, Rajajinagar, Mahalaxmi Layout, Subramanyanagar and Rajagopalnagar.
6E. Asst. Commissioner of Police, Yeswanthapuram Division. Yeswanthapura Division Comprising of Police Stations, Yeswanthapura, Jalahalli, Soladevanahalli, Peenya, R.M.C. Yard, Gangammanagudi, Jayachamarajendra Nagar, Hebbal, Yelahanka and Ravindranath Tagore Nagar.
6F. Asst. Commissioner of Police, Seshadripuram Division. Seshadripura Division comprising of Police Stations, Seshadripuram, Vyalikaval, Cubbonpark, High Grounds, Vidhana Soudha, Visweswariah Centre O.P., Legislature Home O.P.
6G. Asst. Commissioner of Police, Chickpet Division. Chickpet Division comprising of Police Stations, Chickpet, Upparpet, City Market and Kalasipalyam.
6H. Asst. Commissioner of Police, Kengerigate Division. Kengerigate Division comprising of Police Stations, Kengerigate, Magadi Road, Jagajeevanaram Nagar, Byatarayanapura, Jnana-Bharathi, Kengeri, Vijayanagar, West of Chord Road, Kamakshipalya.
By Order and in the name of the Governor of Karnataka,
S.T. Badami,
Under Secretary to Govt.
Home Department.
From the above notification it may be seen while the Assistant Commissioner specified at Sl.No. 5 onwards, are designated as special Police Officers empowered to investigate, in the areas of the specified police stations, the Deputy Commissioners specified at Sl. Nos. 1 and 2 are designated as special Police Officers for the areas of East and West division of Police Administration for the City of Bangalore. The two officers specified at Sl. Nos. 3 and 4 have been designated as special Police Officers under the Act for whole of the Bangalore City.
The learned Counsel submitted that the State Government thus had appointed more than one Police Officers in respect of the same area, whereas Section 13(1) authorises the Government only to appoint one Police Officer in respect of one area. In support of the above submission, the learned Counsel relies on the judgment of the Supreme Court in the case of Delhi Administration v. Ramsingh (A.I.R. 1962 S.C. 63).
The learned counsel for the respondents submitted that what was decided in the judgment of the Supreme Court was that only a Special Police Officer authorised by the issue of a notification under Section 13 of the Act by the State Government was competent to investigate into the offences falling within the purview of the Act and that Police Officers other than those specially designated cannot investigate into the offences falling within the purview of the Act and not that more than one Police Officer could not be nominated who have the jurisdiction in respect of the same area. The relevant portion of the judgment is paragraph 24. It reads:
"24. We are therefore of the opinion that the special Police Officer is competent to investigate and that he and his assistant police officers are the only persons competent to investigate offences under the Act and that police officers not specially appointed as special police officers cannot investigate the offences under the Act even though they are cognizable offences. The result is that this appeal by the Delhi Administration fails and is hereby dismissed."
A reading of the above paragraph of the judgment of the Supreme Court clearly indicates that the submission made on behalf of the State is well founded.
The contention that because sub-section (1) of Section 13 provides that a Police Officer designated as Special Police Officer alone has the power to investigate into the offences means that the State Government has no power to nominate more than one Police Officer for the same area, is patently untenable. Every police officer who is specially authorised by the issue of notification by the State Government would have the power to investigate into the offences falling within the purview of the Act. This position has also been clearly explained by the respondents in paragraph 10 of the statement of objection. As pointed out in the above paragraph, in view of sub-section (2) of Section 13 of the Karnataka General Clauses Act and the corresponding provision in the Central General Clauses Act, wherever singular word is used in an enactment, it always includes plural and vice versa. The ratio of the judgment on which the learned counsel for the petitioner relies one makes out that except a police officer designated under sub section (1) of Section 13 of the Act as a special Police Officer for the purposes of the Act, no other police officer can investigate into the offences falling within the purview of the Act.
Having regard to the nature of the offence required to be investigated, the legislature has made such a special provision under Section 13. But the section does not provide that more than one officer cannot be designated. Apart from that, it may be seen, the police administration of the City has been divided into two divisions and each division is placed incharge of a Deputy Commissioner of Police. Each of the two divisions are sub-divided and an officer of the rank of an Assistant Commissioner of Police is placed incharge of each sub-division. The Government has designated the Deputy Commissioner of Police of the concerned division as special officer for that division, and the Assistant Commissioner of each sub-division as special officer for the area concerned. The Government has also conferred jurisdiction on the Deputy Commissioner of Police Crimes, and the Assistant Commissioner of Police Special Squad, Bangalore over the entire area coming under the jurisdiction of the Police Commissioner. This has been done for the effective implementation of the provisions of the Act. There is no merit in the contention that the impugned notification is contrary to the provisions of Section 13 of the Act.
In the result, I make the following order:
(i) The writ petitions are dismissed.
(ii) No costs.