New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday said criminal proceedings bring stress and social stigma, urging courts, especially trial courts, to show “clarity and courage” within the framework of the charge itself and discharge the accused when material on record fails to establish a prima facie case.Justices Sanjay Karol and NK Singh said the judicial process itself should not become a punishment and courts must always be mindful of the human consequences of their decisions and the trust placed in them by society. The court released the person under the SC/ST Act and passed the order after finding that the person did not meet the elements of the offense under the special law, but allowed the trial court to proceed with the offense under the IPC.The Supreme Court said charges will be filed only when the court forms an opinion that there is reason to presume that the accused committed an offense and said the HC should also seriously consider the plea of release instead of rejecting it mechanically.“…At the stage of laying charges or considering release, the courts are not dealing with abstract legal exercises. They are dealing with real people, real anxieties and the real weight of a criminal prosecution. The duty of justice at this stage requires care, balance and honesty in treating the facts on record. The power to lay charges does not Meant to be exercised by default or simply out of caution. The law expects when material before the court, on its face, does not disclose the elements of an offence. Justice Carroll, who wrote the judgment, said: “The court must have the clarity and courage to say something like this and put this type of case aside. “ The bench said the dismissal was not a technical indulgence “but a necessary safeguard”.“Courts must consciously distinguish between genuine cases worthy of trial and cases based solely on suspicion or assumption or without any basis. Allowing a case to proceed without a prima facie case will expose a person to the stress, shame and uncertainty of criminal proceedings without the legal necessity to do so. Fidelity to the rule of law requires courts to remember that if this responsibility is not carefully discharged, the process itself can become punitive. “The judges said the trial court had the greatest responsibility. “For a litigant or an accused, the trial court is not just a level in the hierarchy. It represents the face of the judiciary itself. The sensitivity, fairness and legal discipline displayed at this stage shape the ordinary citizen’s understanding of justice. The impression created by the trial court through its attitude towards facts and law tends to become the impression one has on the judicial system as a whole. This is why at every stage, especially at the threshold, the trial court must always be alert to the impact of its judgments on people and the trust placed in them by society,” it said.
