<p>The High Court has said that a Police Sub-Inspector is empowered to investigate and file the chargesheet. Justice K Natarajan said this while dismissing the petitions seeking bail as well as quashing of the chargesheet in the Byadarahalli suicide case.</p>.<p>Four members of a family, including a child, had died by suicide in Byadarahalli last year. One of the petitions challenged the filing of the chargesheet contending that it was not filed by a Police Inspector, who is the Station House Officer (SHO) of Byadarahalli police station. The petitioner submitted that the final report was forwarded to the court by the Police Sub-Inspector, a subordinate officer to the Police Inspector, and he has no authority to file the chargesheet. Though any officer may investigate the case, a chargesheet has to be forwarded by the officer in-charge of the police station, the petition claimed.</p>.<p>After perusing the guidelines and police manual, the court pointed out that a police<br />sub-inspector is also empowered as the officer-in-charge of the police station to file the chargesheet. In the case on hand, the complaint was filed by the Police Inspector showing the Sub-Inspector as SHO, who in turn, registered the FIR, investigated the matter and filed the chargesheet.</p>.<p>On the other petitions seeking bail, the court observed that the death notes procured from the scene clearly establishes the harassment meted out to the deceased and abetment to suicide. The court said there is no reason to disbelieve the death notes at this stage. “It cannot be considered a single incident or ordinary incident of a suicide but it is an unfortunate mass suicide of four elders by leaving the death notes to attract the attention of public at large and the police officials as they wanted justice,” the court said while dismissing the petitions.</p>.<p>The first information about the suicide was provided to the police by tabloid editor Halagere Shankar, who was later arrayed as accused number 1. Shankar returned home on September 17, 2021 and saw his wife Bharathi, their two daughters, Sinchana Kumari and Sindhu Rani, their son Madhusagar and Sindhu Rani’s nine month old baby dead at his house in Thigalarapalya on Magadi Road. Based on the death notes left behind by the deceased, Shankar, his sons-in-law Eediga Srikanth and E S Praveen Kumar were arrested and remanded in judicial custody.</p>
<p>The High Court has said that a Police Sub-Inspector is empowered to investigate and file the chargesheet. Justice K Natarajan said this while dismissing the petitions seeking bail as well as quashing of the chargesheet in the Byadarahalli suicide case.</p>.<p>Four members of a family, including a child, had died by suicide in Byadarahalli last year. One of the petitions challenged the filing of the chargesheet contending that it was not filed by a Police Inspector, who is the Station House Officer (SHO) of Byadarahalli police station. The petitioner submitted that the final report was forwarded to the court by the Police Sub-Inspector, a subordinate officer to the Police Inspector, and he has no authority to file the chargesheet. Though any officer may investigate the case, a chargesheet has to be forwarded by the officer in-charge of the police station, the petition claimed.</p>.<p>After perusing the guidelines and police manual, the court pointed out that a police<br />sub-inspector is also empowered as the officer-in-charge of the police station to file the chargesheet. In the case on hand, the complaint was filed by the Police Inspector showing the Sub-Inspector as SHO, who in turn, registered the FIR, investigated the matter and filed the chargesheet.</p>.<p>On the other petitions seeking bail, the court observed that the death notes procured from the scene clearly establishes the harassment meted out to the deceased and abetment to suicide. The court said there is no reason to disbelieve the death notes at this stage. “It cannot be considered a single incident or ordinary incident of a suicide but it is an unfortunate mass suicide of four elders by leaving the death notes to attract the attention of public at large and the police officials as they wanted justice,” the court said while dismissing the petitions.</p>.<p>The first information about the suicide was provided to the police by tabloid editor Halagere Shankar, who was later arrayed as accused number 1. Shankar returned home on September 17, 2021 and saw his wife Bharathi, their two daughters, Sinchana Kumari and Sindhu Rani, their son Madhusagar and Sindhu Rani’s nine month old baby dead at his house in Thigalarapalya on Magadi Road. Based on the death notes left behind by the deceased, Shankar, his sons-in-law Eediga Srikanth and E S Praveen Kumar were arrested and remanded in judicial custody.</p>
