W.P No. 879-M of 2019
Zahid Khan Vs The State and others
11-10-2022
The law is settled that discharge of an accused or cancellation of case by a Magistrate are not legally possible after cognizance of the case has been taken by the trial Court. The question whether the case could be cancelled under section 173, Cr.P.C. after the Court had taken cognizance, has been resolved by Hon’ble Supreme Court in the case of “Muhammad Alam and another Vs. Additional Secretary to Government of N.W.F. P, Home & Tribal Affairs Department and 4 Others” (P L D 1987 Supreme Court 103) by observing that:
Chapter XVII of Cr.P.C. deals with \"the commencement of proceedings before the Courts\". Section 204 therein deals with the issuance of process by the Court on taking of cognizance. After taking the cognizance and even before the issuance of the process, the normal procedure under the Code or the Regulation, as the case may be, would be followed. The police report would not relieve the Court of its obligation to continue the proceedings until their proper termination under the relevant law. The cancellation of case under section 173 is not permissible after the cognizance has been taken. But it could have been done before that stage. It was so held in the Full Bench case of Lahore High Court, Wazir v. The State (P L D 1962 (W. P.) Lah. 405), which we feel is correct approach in so far as this point of cancellation, before cognizance, is concerned.
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