COMPLAINT TO THE SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE
To: __________
Date: __________
From: __________, __________, aged __________, of __________, telephone __________
Subject: Information of a cognizable offence given at Police Station __________ on __________ and not recorded as a first information report: complaint by post under section 173(4) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023
Sir or Madam,
- 1. The information I gave. On __________ I gave information to the officer in charge of Police Station __________, __________. The information was about __________. The persons concerned are __________, and the incident happened on or about __________.
- 2. What the police station did. __________ The information has not been recorded as a first information report, and I have not been given a copy of any such record.
- 3. Evidence. I hold the following evidence and will hand it to the investigating officer: __________.
- 4. My request. Please consider the information, and if it discloses a cognizable offence, have it recorded as a first information report and investigated, either by you or by an officer subordinate to you, as section 173(4) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 provides, and let me have a copy of the record free of cost. I ask that the officer in charge of the police station be directed to act on the information. __________
- 5. If no action follows. If this complaint too brings no action, I will apply to the Magistrate, who may order an investigation under section 175(3) after considering my application, supported by affidavit, and the submission of the police.
- 6. Other proceedings, and the truth of this account. What I have stated is true to my own knowledge, except where I say I was told it, and I have left out nothing I know about the matter. Enclosed: __________.
LEGAL BASIS
Punjab: The information is received by the officer in charge of a police station under section 173(1) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, orally or electronically and wherever the offence happened; electronic information is signed within three days, and a copy goes to the informant free of cost under section 173(2). Against a refusal to record it, the route is a written complaint by post to the Superintendent of Police under section 173(4), and then an application supported by affidavit to the court of a Magistrate empowered under section 210, which may order investigation under section 175(3). The Sanhita has been in force since 1 July 2024. A police complaint decides no civil right: a claim for money or property is still for the civil court.
Chandigarh: The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 is central law and applies in the Union Territory in the same terms from 1 July 2024. The officer in charge of the police station receives and records the information under section 173(1) and gives a free copy under section 173(2). Against a refusal to record it, the route is a written complaint by post to the Superintendent of Police under section 173(4), and then an application supported by affidavit to the court of a Magistrate at Chandigarh empowered under section 210, which may order investigation under section 175(3). A police complaint decides no civil right, which remains for the civil court at Chandigarh.
PERSONAL DATA NOTICE
This notice is given under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023.
The purpose of collecting the personal data in this document is to identify the complainant and the persons concerned, and to record what was reported and what the police station did, so that the Superintendent of Police can examine the complaint.
The record will be held by __________ and may be shared with the complainant, the Superintendent of Police and the officers who examine this complaint, the police station concerned, the Magistrate and any court that tries the offence, and the complainant's advocate.
If the matter does not proceed, the personal data will be retained for 90 days and then erased. If the matter proceeds, the record will be retained for the transaction or authority matter plus 12 months, except where a statute requires a longer named retention period.
A person named in this document may request correction or erasure where the purpose has ended, withdraw consent for future consent-based processing, or raise a grievance by writing to __________. The record-holder should acknowledge and reply within 30 days.
Data minimisation: this document does not collect a full Aadhaar number, an Aadhaar-card copy, a password or bank credentials.
Personal-data instruction: __________.
SIGNATURE
______________________________
Signature
Complainant: __________
Place: ____________________
Date: ____________________