The Supreme Court has recently clarified that referring to the records of a Trial Court as “Lower Court Record” goes against the ethos of the Constitution. In a ruling, the bench of Justice Abhay S Oka and Justice A G Masih stated:
"The record of the Trial Court should not be referred to as ‘Lower Court Record’. Describing any Court as a ‘Lower Court’ is against the ethos of our Constitution."
The Court made this observation while deciding a criminal appeal, where it set aside a life sentence imposed on two appellants convicted under Section 302 and Section 307 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
The Supreme Court emphasized that its direction was not new. In its earlier order on February 8, 2024, it had already instructed the Registry to use the term Trial Court Record (TCR) instead of Lower Court Record (LCR). To implement this, the Registry issued a circular on February 28, 2024, formalizing the change.
In the case, the Court noted that there were serious lapses in the investigation. Three eyewitnesses, who had given affidavits during the bail hearings, denied the involvement of the accused in the crime. However, the prosecution failed to act on these affidavits and did not carry out further investigation. Instead, these affidavits were suppressed, raising questions about the fairness of the investigation.
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The Supreme Court highlighted this issue in strong terms:
"As the prosecution has not conducted a fair investigation and has suppressed important material in the form of affidavits of PW-5 to PW-7, it is unsafe to convict the appellants only on the basis of the testimony of PW-4. The failure to conduct further investigation based on the affidavits goes to the root of the matter. The failure to recover the weapons of offence also becomes relevant in the background of these circumstances."
Due to these significant shortcomings, the Court found it unsafe to uphold the conviction. This case not only sheds light on the issue of fair investigation but also emphasizes the need to respect the constitutional ethos by avoiding terms like “Lower Court” when referring to the Trial Court.
This clear direction by the Supreme Court ensures that all courts are referred to in a manner consistent with the dignity and respect they deserve under the Constitution.
Case : Sakhawat and another vs State of Uttar Pradesh
