Citizen visiting police station can't be treated as criminal: Supreme Court

New Delhi: The Supreme Court has said a citizen who wants to report commission of an offence, should not be treated like a criminal and anyone who goes to a police station must be treated with human dignity as this is his fundamental right under Article 21 of the Constitution.

Upholding the liability on a police inspector to pay Rs 2 lakh compensation to a complainant for use of filthy language, a bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan said, "The facts of this case, to say the least, are shocking".

Appellant Pavul Yesu Dhasan, who was posted as the Inspector of Police attached to Srivilliputhur Town Police Station (Crime) Virthunagar District, Tamil Nadu, was found to have not only refused to lodge an FIR, but used very objectionable language, while talking to the complainant's mother, the bench said.

The appellant's counsel contended assuming that the police inspector declined to register the FIR, it will not amount to violation of human rights. He cited the definition of “human rights” under Section 2 (d) of the Human Rights Act, 1993, which stated that "human rights" means the rights relating to life, liberty, equality and dignity of the individual guaranteed by the Constitution or embodied in the International Covenants and enforceable by courts in India.

The court noted all that the complainant wanted was the registration of FIR based on his complaint.

"Though the law is well settled, the Sub-Inspector did not register the crime. The appellant being a senior officer ought to have immediately registered the FIR," the bench said.

But the officer used abusive and objectionable language, it added.

The court pointed out, under clause (d) of Section 2 of the Act, “human rights” means the rights relating to life, liberty, equality and dignity of the individual guaranteed by the Constitution.

"Every citizen of India who goes to a Police Station to report commission of an offence deserves to be treated with human dignity. That is his fundamental right under Article 21 of the Constitution of India. A citizen who wants to report commission of an offence, should not be treated like a criminal," the bench said, dismissing the appeal.

In view of the conduct of the appellant, the bench said it was rightly found by the Commission and by the High Court that there was a violation of human rights on the part of the appellant.

The Tamil Nadu State Human Rights Commission directed the state government to pay Rs two lakh as compensation to the complainant with a liberty to recover the amount from the appellant. The Madras High Court refused to interfere with the order.