SN3 SHORT NOTE 5M ★ High-yield

Distinguish cognizable from non-cognizable offences, and summons from warrant cases.

Forensic Medicine · 2nd Professional — Para-Clinical

Cognizable and Non-cognizable Offences

Feature	Cognizable	Non-cognizable
Arrest	Police may arrest without a warrant	A warrant from a magistrate is required
Investigation	Police may investigate on their own, without the order of a magistrate	Requires the order of a magistrate
Recording of information	A first information report (FIR) is registered	Entered in the station diary; the informant is referred to a magistrate
Gravity	Serious — murder, culpable homicide, rape, dowry death, grievous hurt, kidnapping, robbery	Less serious — simple hurt, defamation, public nuisance, assault
Compounding	Generally not compoundable	Generally compoundable — may be settled between the parties, with the court's permission where required

The distinction determines what the police may do without a magistrate, and therefore how quickly an investigation begins — which is why the classification of an injury as simple or grievous by a doctor has immediate procedural consequences and is not merely descriptive
A doctor's wound certificate can convert a case from non-cognizable to cognizable, and it is for that reason that the opinion must be given carefully, and kept pending where the evidence is incomplete

CLINICAL PEARL

The doctor’s single word "grievous" changes the legal machinery that follows. Simple hurt is largely non-cognizable and compoundable; grievous hurt is cognizable, non-bailable in serious forms, and carries up to seven years. The doctor is not deciding guilt, but the classification decides whether the police can arrest without a warrant. This is why an opinion should be kept pending until the radiograph is seen, rather than guessed at in the casualty.

Summons Cases, Warrant Cases, Bail

Distinction	Detail
Summons case	An offence punishable with imprisonment for a term not exceeding 2 years. The accused is summoned; the procedure is simpler and a formal charge need not be framed
Warrant case	An offence punishable with death, imprisonment for life, or imprisonment exceeding 2 years. A formal charge is framed and the full trial procedure followed
Bailable offence	Bail is a matter OF right; the police or court must release the accused on bail
Non-bailable offence	Bail is at the discretion of the court, exercised on the nature of the offence, the evidence and the risk of absconding or tampering

Inquiry, investigation and trial are distinct and are frequently confused: investigation is conducted by the police and consists of collecting evidence; inquiry is conducted by a magistrate or court and precedes the trial; trial is the judicial proceeding that ends in conviction or acquittal
The FIR is the first information relating to a cognizable offence given to the officer in charge of a police station; it is reduced to writing, read over to the informant, signed by them, and a copy given free of charge. It is not substantive evidence but may be used to corroborate or contradict the informant
Zero FIR — an FIR may be registered at any police station irrespective of jurisdiction and then transferred, which matters where a victim presents to a hospital far from where the offence occurred

Punishments and Applied Aspects

Punishment under BNS section 4 (formerly IPC 53)	Note
Death	Awarded in the "rarest of rare" cases; a Sessions Court sentence requires confirmation by the High Court
Imprisonment for life	Means imprisonment for the remainder of the person's natural life unless commuted
Imprisonment	Rigorous (with hard labour) or simple
Forfeiture of property	—
Fine	—
Community service	Newly introduced by the BNS 2023 — a notable addition, available for certain minor offences

Know whether the case you are certifying is cognizable; it determines the urgency with which the police require your report and whether a person is likely to be in custody awaiting it
Do not withhold or delay a wound certificate to avoid involvement; the delay obstructs the investigation, and refusal to assist the police in a cognizable case is itself an offence
Keep the opinion pending rather than guessing where a fracture, an internal injury or the outcome of an eye injury is uncertain; the final opinion is given later on the reports and is far more defensible
Record the alleged history as alleged and attributed to its source; a doctor writes "the patient states he was struck with an iron rod", not "he was struck with an iron rod", since the second is a fact the doctor cannot know
Emergency treatment comes before paperwork; the Supreme Court in Parmanand Katara v Union of India held that a doctor must treat a medicolegal case immediately and that legal formalities cannot be a reason to delay, and no hospital may refuse a medicolegal case
A registered practitioner is legally bound to attend a summons and to assist the investigation, and this obligation exists irrespective of whether the case is inconvenient or the doctor believes their evidence unimportant

All questions in Introduction, Legal Procedures & the Courts

Every Forensic Medicine chapter →