Magistrate’s Power Under Section 156(3) Cr.P.C. is Strictly Limited to Their Territorial Jurisdiction

The petitioner filed an application under Section 156(3) of the Cr.P.C. before the V Metropolitan Magistrate (M.M.), Egmore, seeking a direction for the police to take action based on his information.

The petitioner resides in Virugambakkam, Chennai.

The V M.M. dismissed the application on June 3, 2023, citing a lack of territorial jurisdiction over the Virugambakkam area.

The petitioner challenged this dismissal via a Criminal Revision Case, contending that under Section 16(3) of the Cr.P.C., every Metropolitan Magistrate possesses jurisdiction throughout the entire Metropolitan area.

1. Whether a Metropolitan Magistrate has the power under Section 156(3) of the Cr.P.C. to order an investigation into an offense committed outside their specifically assigned local jurisdiction but within the same Metropolitan area.

Section 156 of the Cr.P.C. empowers a Magistrate to order an investigation only if they have the power to inquire into or try the case under Chapter XIII.

Section 16 of the Cr.P.C. deals with the establishment and general powers of Metropolitan Magistrates while Section 177 of the Cr.P.C. mandates that every offense shall ordinarily be inquired into and tried by a Court within whose local jurisdiction it was committed.

The doctrine that criminal cases must be tried where the cause of action arose as affirmed in Y. Abraham Ajith v. Inspector of Police (2004) 8 SCC 100 and Swaati Nirkhi v. State (NCT of Delhi) (2021) 11 SCC 163.

The court reasoned that while Section 16(3) of the Cr.P.C. states that the powers of a Metropolitan Magistrate extend throughout the metropolitan area, this is subject to the specific distribution of business and local limits defined by the State Government and High Court under Section 16(1).

The court noted that the Virugambakkam area falls under the specific local jurisdiction of the XII Metropolitan Magistrate, not the V Metropolitan Magistrate.

Applying Section 156(1), the court held that a Magistrate’s authority to order an investigation is contingent upon their jurisdiction to try the case under Section 177.

The court distinguished the mandatory duty of police to register "Zero FIRs" under Section 154 from the restricted statutory power of a Magistrate under Section 156(3), concluding that the latter is strictly confined to the Magistrate’s assigned territorial jurisdiction.

The High Court found no infirmity in the V Metropolitan Magistrate's order and dismissed the Criminal Revision Case.