Suspects' Rights in India: Comparative Law and the Right to Legal Assistance As Drivers for Reform
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SUSPECTS’ RIGHTS IN INDIA: COMPARATIVE LAW AND THE RIGHT TO LEGAL ASSISTANCE AS DRIVERS FOR REFORM A thesis submitted for the Degree of Doctorate of Philosophy in Law By Prejal Shah School of Law Brunel University 2016 DECLARATION I declare that the work presented in this thesis is my own and has not been submitted for any other degree or professional qualification. The copyright of this thesis remains with the author. No quotation from it should be published without her prior consent and information from it should be acknowledged. Prejal Shah Brunel Law School London February 2016 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Pursuing a PhD was a dream for me and there are many people who have helped in making this dream come true. I would like to begin by thanking my lovely parents Mukesh and Bharti for helping me believe in myself and making me believe that ‘no mountain is so big that you cannot climb it’. I would like to thank my husband, Kinjal for his enduring patience and support. A million thanks will not be sufficient for all your efforts and for the patience you’ve all had in the past few years. I would also like to thank my sister, Shreya whose wit and humour kept me going through tough times. Thank you to my entire family for being my guiding light for which I am forever in debt. I would also like to express my gratitude to my supervisor, teacher, guide, and mentor Dr Dimitrios Giannoulopoulos, without whom this PhD would not have been possible. Thank you for believing in me and being most patient over the span of my research. Your ideas and input have enriched my thesis and broadened the horizon of my knowledge. Thank for all your help and guidance from the initial days of my research to the completion of this thesis. Lastly, but by means the least, I would like to thank God for everything. Thank you to my numerous friends who kept me going regardless of the circumstances and helping me through all times. Abstract This thesis revolves around a detailed examination of the procedural, cultural, and institutional framework of custodial interrogation in India, from a theoretical and practical perspective, and is informed by a strong empirical element in the form of interviews with related institutional parties. The intuition that underpinned this research was that custodial interrogation practices in India were in urgent need for reform, and significant evidence – in the form of appellate jurisprudence, criminal law scholarship and empirical research – will be presented to demonstrate this. Adopting an outward-looking frame of mind, this thesis concentrates on the use of comparative law methodologies as the most appropriate means for effectively seeking reform, with an emphasis on common law scholarship and jurisprudence – and the law of England and Wales in particular and on the emerging, seminal, jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights on applications of the right to fair trial at the custodial interrogation stage. Identifying fundamental flaws in the Indian framework of custodial interrogation, and a systemic failure from the part of the police to implement suspects’ rights, this thesis calls attention to the right to legal assistance as the only viable solution providing a realistic prospect of breaking the culture of police lawlessness at this critical stage of the criminal process. Modelled upon modern applications of the right to legal assistance in England and Wales, and radical Strasbourg- inspired reforms in other European jurisdictions, this solution – which emphasises the need for prior consultation with a lawyer and having a lawyer present during custodial interrogation – obtains particular comparative force and has therefore the capacity to exercise a strong appeal upon the Indian legislator. TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION ABSTRACT ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS LIST OF ABBREVIATION Chapter 1- Introduction 1.1 Nature and scope of the thesis ………………………………………………1 1.2 Aim……………………………………………..……………………………..2 1.3 Structure of thesis……………………………….……………………………3 Chapter 2- Methods and methodology 2.1 Research methodology: Comparative Law ………………………………….6 2.2 Why compare India and England and Wales?............................................7 2.3 Drawbacks of using comparative law ……………………………………….8 2.4 Legal transplant ……………………………………………………………...9 2.5 Research method ……………………………………………………………10 2.6 Primary data: Legal cases and legislation ………………………………….11 2.7 Triangulation method ………………………………………………………12 2.8 Empirical research …………………………………………………………..12 2.8.1 Qualitative analysis ………………………………………………..13 2.8.2 Grounded theory …………………………………………………...14 2.8.3 Interviews …………………………………………………………..14 2.8.4 Groups ……………………………………………………………...15 2.8.5 Ethical issues ……………………………………………………….15 2.8.6 Structure of interviews …………………………………………….15 2.8.7 Lack of observation ………………………………………………..16 2.8.8 Limitations …………………………………………………………16 Chapter 3- Police Interrogation: the Need for Reform 3.1 Introduction………………………………………………………………….17 3.2 Police investigation context- India………………………………………….17 3.2.1 First Information Report- Cognizable offences…………………..19 3.2.1.1 Failure to register FIR……………………………………21 3.2.1.2 Use of Discretion…………………………………………23 3.2.2 Magistrate’s order- Non-Cognizable offences ……………………25 3.3 Arrest…………………………………………………………………………27 3.3.1 Difference between arrest and investigation ……………………..28 3.4 Duties of a Police Officer…………………………………………………….29 3.4.1 Duty to inform the grounds of arrest……………………………...31 3.4.2 Duty to inform a relative…………………………………………...33 3.4.3 Duty to be examined by a medical examiner……………………...34 3.4.4 Duty to be produced before a magistrate ………………………….35 3.4.5 Interpreter…………………………………………………………...36 3.4.6 Consequences of failure ……………………………………………37 3.5 Police Training………………………………………………………………..39 3.5.1 State regulated………………………………………………………39 3.5.2 Lack of training for interrogation…………………………………..40 3.5.3 Senior officers training junior officers……………………………..41 3.5.4 Theory and practice…………………………………………………42 3.5.5 Lack of updated technology ………………………………………..43 3.5.6 Lack of education of human rights ………………………………..43 3.5.7 Lack of funds…………………………………………………….....44 3.5.8 Is training sufficient? ………………………………………………44 3.6 Police reforms…………………………………………………………………45 3.6.1 Commissions……………………………………………………......46 3.6.1.1 National Police Commission, 1997……………………….46 3.6.1.2 Ribeiro Commission, 1998……………………………......46 3.6.1.3 Padmanabhaiah Commission, 2000………………………47 3.6.1.4 Malimath Commission……………………………………48 3.6.1.5 Sorabjee Commission, 2006………………………………48 3.6.2 Criticism……………………………………………………………..49 3.6.2.1 Repetition and lack of depth……………………………...49 3.6.2.2 No regard for suspects’ human rights……………………50 3.6.2.3 Lack of cooperation from states………………………….50 3.6.2.4 Political pressure …………………………………………51 3.6.3 Supreme Court jurisprudence ……………………………………..51 3.6.3.1 The Seven point directives……………………………….52 3.6.3.2 Action against non-compliance…………………………..53 3.6.4 Need for reforms- Police perspective……………………………….54 3.7 Use of CCTV………………………………………………………………….55 3.8 Corruption …………………………………………………………………...56 3.9 Rule of law…………………………………………………………………….58 3.10 Police accountability and transparency …………………………………….59 3.11 Public perception ……………………………………………………………61 3.12 Comparing India with England and Wales…………………………………62 3.12.1 Pre-PACE…………………………………………………………..63 3.12.2 Paving a way for PACE……………………………………………64 3.12.3 Post-PACE…………………………………………………………66 3.12.4 Arrest………………………………………………………………68 3.12.5 Interview and interrogation ……………………………………..69 3.13 How is Police interrogation conducted? …………………………………..70 3.13.1 Caution as a police duty…………………………………………..70 3.13.2 Duties of a Custody Officer……………………………………….72 3.13.2.1 Right to have someone informed…………………….…72 3.13.2.2 Right to medical advice………………………………….73 3.13.2.3 Fitness to be interviewed………………………….........73 3.13.2.4 Interpretation…………………………………………….74 3.13.3 Non- compliance…………………………………………………..75 3.14 IPCC…………………………………………………………………….......76 3.14.1 Criticisms………………………………………………………….77 3.15 Tape Recording of interviews……………………………………………...79 3.15.1 Drawbacks………………………………………………………...80 3.16 Police Training……………………………………………………………...80 3.16.1 PEACE…………………………………………………………….82 3.16.2 Legitimate questioning …………………………………………..83 3.17 Rule of law………………………………………………………………….84 3.18 Police culture……………………………………………………………….86 3.19 Police accountability and transparency …………………………………..87 3.19.1 Public perception…………………………………………………88 3.19.2 Police Legitimacy…………………………………………………89 3.20 Corruption…………………………………………………………………..91 3.20.1 Reducing bureaucracy ……………………………………….....92 3.21 Analysis of comparison …………………………………………………...93 3.22 Conclusion…………………………………………………………………97 Chapter 4- The Way Forward: Enhancing the Right to Custodial Legal Assistance 4.1 Introduction………………………………………………………………..99 4.2 Indian context for the right to legal assistance…………………………..100 4.2.1 Constitutional provisions………………………………………..101 4.2.1.1 Right to be presented before a magistrate ……………101 4.2.2 International obligations ………………………………………..102 4.2.3 Institutional interpretation………………………………………103 4.2.4 Use of Foreign Case law as precedence…………………………104 4.2.5 Recognition of the right to legal assistance ……………………105 4.2.6 Custodial legal assistance………………………………………..106 4.2.7 Difference between custody and arrest………………………….108 4.2.8 No follow-up……………………………………………………..109 4.2.9 Need for legislation………………………………………………109 4.3 Justice Malimath Committee Report …………………………………….111 4.3.1 Adversarial v inquisitorial ………………………………………112 4.4 Legal Aid…………………………………………………………………..114