Question: Can high court order for the further investigation in rape cases? My brother is falsely implicated in the gang rape. Some villagers have conspired and prepared a mentally sick woman to make false allegations against four persons including my brother. The incident was alleged to have happened in 2021 when lockdown was declared in the state of Uttar Pradesh due to increasing cases of covid 19. In those days no one was able to leave the village. During those days the mentally sick woman was living with a lady in the village. No medical examination was conducted by the investigating officer.
However no eye witness was there to support the allegation. Entire case is built-up on the statement of the raped woman. The investigating officer has produced the charge sheet against all four accused. My advocate is suggested to file a petition in the high court under 482 for further investigation order. Can the high court direct the investigating officer to conduct a medical examination and collect evidence of an eye witness?
Asked from: Uttar Pradesh
Section 482 of the code of criminal procedure does not grant the high court the authority to issue such an order. Nonetheless, under section 156 crpc, the magistrate possesses the power to order further investigation. In addition, section 173[8] of the crpc permits the investigating officer to submit a report of further investigation if new evidence is discovered in the case.
Upon initial review, your case does not appear to warrant seeking an order for further investigation from the high court. In rape cases, the victim’s oral statement and allegations alone are typically sufficient to initiate an investigation. Moreover, it is rare to find eyewitnesses in such cases.
If information regarding the rape offense was reported after a significant delay, it may not be possible for the investigating officer to obtain medical evidence from the examination of the victim. Thus, seeking further investigation on this basis is not a viable option. It would be advisable for you to contest the case and present evidence in support of your innocence.