What is an FIR?
In India and other nations with comparable legal systems, police officers file a written
report known as a First Information Report (FIR) upon learning of a cognizable offence. An
offence that qualifies as cognizable allows the police to make an arrest without a warrant and
open an investigation without a judge’s approval. In the criminal justice system, filing a
formal first report of inquiry (FIR) is an essential step.
Procedure to file a FIR
Anybody with knowledge of the crime, including witnesses and victims, may file a
First Information Report (FIR). It can be filed in writing at the closest police station or
verbally, which the police will then record.
Purpose of an FIR
- Formal Documentation: The FIR provides a formal record of the complaint lodged
by the informant or victim. - Starting Investigation: It triggers the investigation process by the police, which may
include gathering evidence, conducting searches, and making arrests. - Legal Action: Once the FIR is filed, it becomes the basis for any legal action that
may follow.
The following points may be noted about a F.I.R.:
- It should be information of fact disclosing the commission of a cognizable offence.
- It should not be vague or indefinite. ‘If the allegations made in the F.I.R. are taken at
their face value and accepted in their entirety do not constitute an offence, the
criminal proceedings instituted on the basis of such F.I.R. should be quashed’ [State of
U.P. v R.K Srivastava (1989) 4 SCC 59]. - It may be given by anybody; the injured should not always be the first informant.
- It is not necessary that the offender or the witnesses should be named.
Section 154 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), 1973
It relates to the First Information Report (FIR) filing procedure in India. It describes how
information about a cognizable offence should be reported, as the police are able to make
arrests without a warrant and initiate investigations without a judge’s approval.
Zero FIR
No matter whatever police station receives the report, one can submit a zero FIR
there, regardless of the jurisdiction in which the offence took place. It is not the same as a
standard FIR, which needs to be submitted to the police station that has jurisdiction over the
location of the crime.
Purpose of Zero FIR
Zero FIR is intended to prevent postponements in the reporting and investigation of
serious crimes, such as rape, murder, or accidents, where prompt action would be required. It
guarantees that a victim or informant won’t have to worry about jurisdictional issues when
they make a complaint.
Numbering under Zero FIR
A Zero FIR is identified with a “zero” and is not immediately assigned a number, in
contrast to a conventional FIR, which is assigned a number based on the order of registration
at a certain police station. Following filing, it is forwarded to the appropriate police station
with jurisdiction over the matter, where it is given an official case number and is looked into.
Transfer of Zero FIR
The police station where a Zero FIR was first filed is in charge of sending it to the
police station with the proper jurisdiction after that. The inquiry is subsequently taken over
by the investigating officers at the appropriate station.
Lodging of a Zero FIR
The Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 has been replaced by the Bhartiya Nagarik Suraksha
Sanhita (BNSS)-2023. Section 173 of the BNSS now contains the provisions for registering a
cognizable offence, whereas section 154 of the CrPC did not. The SOP outlines the following
procedural steps which may be followed for the submission and processing of Zero FIRs.
- A complainant approaches any police station irrespective of territorial jurisdiction
(173(1) BNSS) to complain. - The SHO or the officer on duty records the details of the complaint in the Zero FIR
register upon receiving any information regarding the commission of a cognizable
offence that has been committed outside of the territorial jurisdiction of that police
station. Regardless of the jurisdiction, the case will be registered as Zero FIR or “O”
FIR under applicable sections of law.
As per provisions of 173(1) of BNSS:
“1. Every information relating to the commission of a cognizable offence,
irrespective of the area where the offence is committed may begiven orally or by
electronic communication and if given to an officer in
charge of a police station—
(i) orally, it 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;
(ii) by electronic communication, it shall be taken on record by him on being
signed within three days 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: The information given by women against whom an
offence under section 64-71, section 74-79 or section 124 of the BNS,2023 is alleged
to have been committed or attempted, the same shall be recorded by a woman police
officer or any women officer.
Provided further that—
In the event that the person against whom an offence under section 64, section
65, section 66, section 67, section 68, section 69, section 70, section 71, section
74, section 75, section 76, section 77, section 78, section 79 or section 124 of the
Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 is alleged to have been committed or attempted, is
temporarily or permanently mentally or physically disabled, then such information
shall be recorded by a police officer, at the residence of the person seeking to report
such offence or at a convenient place of such person’s choice, in the presence of an
interpreter or a special educator, as the case may be;
(b) the recording of such information shall be video graphed;
(c) the police officer shall get the statement of the person recorded
by a Judicial Magistrate under clause (a) of sub-section (6) of section 183
as soon as possible.”
Preliminary enquiry
As per 173 (3) of BNSS, “Without prejudice to the provisions contained in section
175, on receipt of information relating to the commission of any cognizable offence, which is
made punishable for three years or more but less than seven years, the officer-in-charge of the
police station may with the prior permission from an officer not below the rank of Deputy
Superintendent of Police, considering the nature and gravity of the offence
Copy of Zero FIR
The officer files the Zero FIR after meeting the conditions outlined in section 173
BNSS. “Zero” is appended to the FIR number to denote that it is a Zero FIR. The informant
or the victim shall promptly receive a free copy of the information as recorded under sub-
section (1) (173(2) BNSS).
Transfer of the Zero FIR
The officer forwards the Zero FIR to the police station having jurisdiction over the
place of the incident. After receiving the Zero FIR, the concerned police station updates its
records to reflect the new FIR as a regular one. An investigating officer receives the FIR from
the SHO for follow-up action.
Legal Basis of a Zero FIR:
Following the Justice Verma Committee’s recommendation—which was made in the
wake of the 2012 Nirbhaya gangrape case—zero FIR was implemented.
A number of Supreme Court and High Court rulings also support the implementation of a
Zero FIR.
For example, the Supreme Court declared in Lalita Kumari v. Govt. of UP (2014) that
filing a First Information Report (FIR) is required if information reveals the commission of a
crime that is punishable by law.
The Delhi High Court ruled in Satvinder Kaur v. State (1999) that a woman may file a
complaint from any location other than the scene of the occurrence.