Notices via WhatsApp/Email by Police Invalid Under CrPC & BNSS, Says Court
- rit arora
- Sep 16
- 2 min read
By Lex Horizon
In a recent order, the Hon’ble Apex court issued guidelines for all the States/UTs to issue standing orders requiring notices under Section 41-A CrPC/Section 35 BNSS to be served only through prescribed legal modes, not electronic ones.
On 21.01.2025, while deciding certain miscellaneous applications in SLP (Crl) No. 5191/2021 titled Satender Kumar Antil vs Central Bureau of Investigation & Anr. the Hon’ble Supreme Court was considering three broad issues: -
(i) Release of Undertrial Prisoners (for short “UTPs”) on personal bond, based on verification of AADHAAR Card.
(ii) Service of Notice under Section 41-A of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (for short “CrPC, 1973”) and Section 35 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (for short “BNSS, 2023”) is to be made in person, as contemplated under the statutes, and not through WhatsApp or other electronic modes.
(iii) Whether sufficient steps have been taken by the High Courts to set in place an “Institutional Monitoring Mechanism” in pursuance of the order dtd. 06.08.2024 passed by this court?
Having heard the parties, the Hon’ble Court issued the following directions: -
a) All the States/UTs must issue a Standing Order to their respective Police machinery to issue notices under Section 41-A of CrPC, 1973/Section 35 of BNSS, 2023 only through the mode of service as prescribed under the CrPC, 1973/BNSS, 2023. It is made amply clear that service of notice through WhatsApp or other electronic modes cannot be considered or recognised as an alternative or substitute to the mode of service recognised and prescribed under the CrPC, 1973/BNSS, 2023.
b) All the States/UTs while issuing Standing Orders to their respective Police machinery relating to Section 41-A of CrPC, 1973/Section 35 of BNSS, 2023 must be issued strictly in accordance with the guidelines issued by the Delhi High Court in Rakesh Kumar v. Vijayanta Arya (DCP) & Ors., 2021 SCC Online Del 5629 and Amandeep Singh Johar v. State (NCT Delhi), 2018 SCC Online Del 13448, both of which were upheld by this Court in Satender Kumar Antil v. CBI & Anr. (2022) 10 SCC 51.
c) All the States/UTs must issue an additional Standing Order to their respective Police machinery to issue notices under Section 160 of CrPC, 1973/Section 179 of BNSS, 2023 and Section 175 of CrPC, 1973/Section 195 of BNSS, 2023 to the accused persons or otherwise, only through the mode of service as prescribed under the CrPC, 1973/BNSS, 2023.
d) All the High Courts must hold meetings of their respective Committees for “Ensuring the Implementations of the Decisions of the Apex Court” on a monthly basis, in order to ensure compliance of both the past and future directions issued by this Court at all levels, and to also ensure that monthly compliance reports are being submitted by the concerned authorities.
Find the order here
