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IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA

DHARWAD BENCH
DATED THIS THE 30TH DAY OF JANUARY, 2014

BEFORE

THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE K.N. PHANEENDRA

CRIMINAL REVISION PETITION NO. 2286/2013

BETWEEN:

CHANDRAMOHAN
BASAVANNEPPA CHADICHAL
AGE: MAJOR, OCC: SERVICE
R/O. NH4/A, OFFICE, BELGAUM.
... PETITIONER

(BY SRI S. B. DEYANNAVAR, ADVOCATE)

AND :

1. THE STATE OF KARNATAKA

LOKAYUKTA POLICE BELGAUM
R/BY STATE PUBLIC PROSECUTOR
DHARWAD BENCH, DHARWAD.

2. IBRAHIM ABDULKARIM HUDALIKAR

AGE: 55 YEARS, OCC: BUSINESS
R/O. NITTUR, TQ: KHANAPUR
DIST: BELGAUM.
... RESPONDENTS

(BY SRI JAGADISH PATIL, ADVOCATE FOR R1)

THIS CRIMINAL PETITION IS FILED UNDER SECTION 397

OF CR.P.C. SEEKING THAT ALLOWING THE REVISION
DIRECTION BE GIVEN TO LOKAYUKTA POLICE TO PRODUCE
THE DVD ARTICLE NO.6 SUBMITTED ALONG WITH CHARGE
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SHEET AND THE ORDER PASSED BY THE IV-ADDL. DIST. &
SESSIONS JUDGE, & SPL. JUDGE (PCA) (LOKAYUKTA)
BELGAUM BE SET ASIDE IN SPL. CASE NO.36/2012 AND
LOKAYUKTA, BELGAUM CRIME NO.24/2011.

THIS CRIMINAL REVISION PETITION COMING ON FOR

ADMISSION THIS DAY, THE COURT MADE THE FOLLOWING:

ORDER

Heard learned counsel for the petitioner. Perused the

records.

2. The present petition is filed seeking for direction to

the Investigating Agency or to the trial Court to furnish or

supply a copy of the DVD containing the conversation

between complainant and accused. It is alleged that DVD

was produced before the Court along with chargesheet, but a

copy of DVD has not been furnished to the

petitioner/accused. In this regard, petitioner has filed an

application under Section 207 of Code of Criminal

Procedure, 1973 (hereinafter referred to as ‘Cr.P.C.’ for

brevity) before the Sessions Judge / Special Judge,

(Lokayukta), Belgaum. The said application came to be

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rejected on 15.09.2013. Against which the present revision

petition is filed. It is the contention of other side before trial

Court that DVD produced before the Court is reduced into

writing a typed copy of the conversation is furnished to the

accused and the same is in consonance with the contents of

DVD. There is no dispute by the respondent that the DVD

produced before the Court contains conversation between

complainant and accused. It is also not disputed that the

said DVD was produced along with the chargesheet and it is

a part and parcel of the chargesheet. It is to be noted that, if

the prosecution intends to rely upon the conversation

recorded between complainant and the accused, which is

stored in DVD, then the copy of said DVD shall be provided

to the accused well within time. As per Section 207 of

Cr.P.C. it should be furnished at the time of filing of the

chargesheet to the Court. The learned Judge has not

properly considered this aspect and he is of the opinion that

the prosecution has already supplied the typed copy of

conversation in DVD. It is also said that the burden lies on

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the prosecution to prove the contents of DVD by playing the

same in the Court, in case if the accused finds any variation

or discrepancy or irrelevancy in the contents of DVD and

typed copy of the conversation already supplied, then the

applicant can request the Court for conducting an enquiry

or investigation etc. Therefore, furnishing of DVD at the

early stage does not arise. Hence, the application was

dismissed.

3. It goes without saying that as per Section 207 of

Cr.P.C. as a matter of right the petitioner is entitled to get

the entire charge sheet including any hard disc produced.

The petitioner is entitled to tally with the contents of DVD

and the conversation which is supplied to him in writing,

prior to the examination of witnesses, for the purpose of

preparing his defence. Even otherwise the law mandate that

whatever the materials that the prosecution relies upon in

order to prove the guilt of accused all those materials shall

be supplied to the accused in order to prepare himself for

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the defence. Under the above said circumstances, I do not

find any strong reason to sustain the order of learned

Special Judge. Hence, the same requires to be set aside

with a direction to the concerned police to supply the DVD,

which is furnished to the Court. Hence, I pass the following:

ORDER

The order passed by learned Special Judge,

Lokayuktha, Belgaum, in Special Case No.36/2012, dated

05.09.2013, on an application filed by accused-petitioner

under Section 207 of Cr.P.C. is hereby set aside.

Consequently, the police/Court, as the case may be,

are directed to furnish a copy of DVD, which is produced

before the Court.

SD/-
JUDGE

hnm/