Abstract
INTRODUCTION
The Magistrate is an important functionary under the Criminal Justice System. In India the Code of
Criminal Procedure gives each functionary a specific set of powers to execute in order to complete the process
down through a cognizance of a crime to the process of punishing the guilty. Investigating into the crime is the
function allotted to police. However the magistrate acts as both a guard to protect the unscrupulous functionaries
from torturing the accused or the victims, as well as plays an important role in the investigation process.
This paper aims at understanding the role assigned to the magistrate under the Indian Criminal Justice
System. The work will begin by an understanding of what investigation is, and the meaning assigned to terms
like magistrate, investigation and inquiry. Then there will be a detailed analysis of the provisions under the Code
of Criminal Procedure to decipher the role the magistrate plays in the process of investigation, and the synergy
which is maintained between the State on the one hand and the Judicial wing on the other, in order to avoid any
miscarriage of justice by having a thorough system of checks and balances in place.
All power is, in Madison’s phrase, corrupting and absolute power corrupts absolutely. This statement
aptly fits our objective of understanding the limitations and powers of the functionaries under the Criminal
Justice System. The focus of this paper will be primarily the role a magistrate plays under the Indian Criminal
Procedure.