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All About Suo Moto Proceedings
‘Suo moto’ is a Latin term which basically means, ‘on its own’. It is widely used when government authorities act on their own apprehension. Such authorities include the government as well as the judicial bodies of the nation.
In India, recently, due to the outbreak of COVID-19, the courts have been taking suo moto cognizance of a lot of matters which demand immediate judicial intervention. In such an unprecedented situation, the courts are not waiting for a complaint or application to be filed by litigants and are playing an active role in governing the way through this pandemic.
The courts draw such power from the legal framework of India, particularly the Constitution of India, vide Article 32 and Article 226.
These articles empower the Supreme Court and High Courts, respectively, to take up matters which affect the public at large, on their own cognizance, rather than waiting for any aggrieved party to toil through legal procedures and cause a delay.
The courts can initiate suo moto proceedings in all matters. However, below is a list of common grounds on which such proceedings are initiated:
- Contempt of Court
- Order of a probe by executive authorities or law enforcement agencies
- Reopen old cases
- Contempt of Court
A person is said to be in contempt of court, when he/she defies the court’s authority, impede its ability to function or cast disrespect. In case of display of any behavior which opposes justice or the dignity of the court, the court can initiate proceedings under the Contempt of Courts Act of 1971, without the need of filing a complaint or an application for proceedings.
- Order probe into a new case
If the court is of the opinion that justice was not done or the complaint of any aggrieved person was not taken up or looked into, for example, an FIR was not registered, in such cases, the court can order relevant authorities to follow due process and investigate into the matter. The court may also take such action after receiving a letter from the affected section of people or on the basis of any news, documentary or media source.
- Reopen old cases
If some new and substantial evidence is discovered after a case is closed, the courts have the power to take Suo Moto action and reopen the case to try it again.
In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, a lot of courts and tribunals have initiated suo moto proceedings throughout the country, indicating that even during a nationwide lockdown, justice will find its way. The Apex court, in a suo moto proceeding, granted relief to litigants who feared that their matters will be barred by limitation due to the inaccessibility to courts, during this lockdown, by excluding the tenure of lockdown from the calculation of limitation period.
Such proceedings were also taken up by the Kerala High Court, which took cognizance of police brutality happening in the state and gave instructions to cease such unjust and unlawful acts. It also ordered a temporary release of over four fifty prisoners, in order to decongest state jails.
