'Excessive Time Wasted’ Due To Improper Paper Books: HC

Calls For Proper Placement Of Documents In Criminal Appeals

Srinagar: The High court of J&K and Ladakh on Tuesday said that excessive time is wasted in just trying to locate relevant documents from trial court while hearing criminal appeals as paper books are not properly prepared by its registry.

Hearing an appeal, a bench of Justice Atul Sreedharan and Justice Moksha Khajuria Kazmi directed its registry to ensure all cases in which criminal appeals have to be heard and decided by it, paper books are properly prepared.

“Despite this Court having passed the order dated 09.11.2023 in Cr. Appeal No. 9900007/2017, the paper books are not prepared in the manner so directed by this Court,” the Division Bench said.

It requested the Registrar Judicial to pay special attention to the order and ensure that all cases in which criminal appeals have to be heard and decided by the Court, paper books are properly prepared and placed before it and the same paper book that is available to the Bench is also available to the respective counsel for both the sides.

“Experience has shown that excessive time is wasted in just trying to locate the relevant documents from the trial court record which would otherwise be obviated if the paper books are prepared in the manner required in the aforementioned order,” the court said.

On 9 November 2023 , the court had observed that in case after case, the parties discloses that the paper books have not been prepared and handed over and in cases where the paper books are prepared, they are in haphazard manner and without any sequence.

Accordingly, the court had directed that in all criminal matters, the paper book shall be prepared by placing among others the First Information Report first. “If there is a inquest proceeding on account of cause of death not being known, then the proceedings in the inquest 174 proceedings shall form the next set of documents,” the court had said. Thereafter, the court said, the medico-legal certificate, if there was an examination by the doctor of the victim while he was alive or in cases under Section 307 followed by a post mortem report, if any. “Thereafter, the 27 memorandum of the accused and the seizure memorandum shall come next,” the court had said, adding, “Thereafter, the FSL reports shall be the document which shall