Cognisable offence

Generally, cognisable offence means an offence in which a police officer has the authority to make an arrest without a warrant and to start an investigation with or without the permission of a court. By contrast, in the case of a non-cognisable offence, a police officer does not have the authority to make an arrest without a warrant and an investigation cannot be initiated without a court order. The police can file a first information report (FIR) only for cognisable offences. In cognizable cases police can make an investigation without prior permission of a magistrate. Cognizable cases are more serious than non-cognizable cases.{{cite web|title=What is an FIR?|url=http://www.humanrightsinitiative.org/publications/police/fir.pdf|publisher=Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative|accessdate=5 May 2014}} Normally, serious offences are defined as cognizable and usually carry a sentence of 3 years or more.{{cite book|author=Sunil Goel|title=Courts, Police Authorities & Common Man|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H9z8bslBJv4C&pg=PA117|accessdate=9 April 2014|year=2005|publisher=Sunil Goel|isbn=978-81-907218-0-6|page=117}}

For a non-cognisable offence, a community service register is registered instead of a first information report.

In India, crimes like rape, murder are considered cognizable unlike crimes like public nuisance, hurt and mischief.{{cite web|title=First Information Report (F.I.R)|url=http://www.humanrightsinitiative.org/publications/police/first_information_report.pdf|publisher=Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative|accessdate=5 May 2014|author=Doel Mukerjee|author2=Maja}} In general non-cognizable offences are bailable and placed under First Schedule of Indian Penal Code (IPC).

On 12 November 2013, the Supreme Court of India said it was mandatory for the police to register a First Information Report for all complaints in which a cognizable offence has been discovered.{{cite news|title=Police can't dodge FIR if cognizable offence is disclosed|url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/police-cant-dodge-fir-if-cognizable-offence-is-disclosed/article5342930.ece|accessdate=5 May 2014|newspaper=The Hindu|date=12 November 2013}}

The Section 154 in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, of India states:

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1. Every information relating to the commission of a cognizable offence, if given orally to an officer in charge of a police station, shall be reduced to writing by him or under his direction, and be read over to the informant; and every such information, whether given in writing or reduced to writing as aforesaid, shall be signed by the person giving it, and the substance thereof shall be entered in a book to be kept by such officer in such form as the State Government may prescribe in this behalf.
2. A copy of the information as recorded under sub-section (1) shall be given forthwith, free of cost, to the informant.
3. Any person aggrieved by a refusal on the part of an officer in charge of a police station to record the information referred to in sub-section (1) may send the substance of such information, in writing and by post, to the Superintendent of Police concerned who, if satisfied that such information discloses the commission of a cognizable offence, shall either investigate the case himself or direct an investigation to be made by any police officer subordinate to him, in the manner provided by this Code, and such officer shall have all the powers of an officer in charge of the police station in relation to that offence.{{cite book|author1=Abhinav Prakash|author2=American Law Institute|title=Code of Criminal Procedure|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yeF2I_nHHNMC&pg=PA88|access-date=5 May 2014|year=2007|publisher=Universal Law Publishing|pages=88–89|id=GGKEY:YAA8ZAH3645}}}}

• Community service register
• First information report

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Category:Law enforcement in India

Category:Law enforcement in Pakistan

Category:Law enforcement in Bangladesh

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