Application to Magistrate for Investigation (Section 175(3) BNSS)

IN THE COURT OF [court_name] APPLICATION UNDER SECTION 175(3) OF THE BHARATIYA NAGARIK SURAKSHA SANHITA, 2023 [applicant_name] [applicant_address] ... APPLICANT / COMPLAINANT VERSUS [accused_details] ... PROPOSED ACCUSED MOST RESPECTFULLY SHOWETH: 1. THE FACTS DISCLOSING A COGNIZABLE OFFENCE [offence_details] 2. That the facts stated above disclose the commission of a COGNIZABLE OFFENCE, in respect of which the officer in charge of the police station is under a statutory duty to register a first information report under Section 173(1) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023. 3. THE APPLICANT FIRST APPROACHED THE POLICE 3.1 On [fir_attempt_date] the Applicant approached the officer in charge of [police_station] and sought registration of a first information report in respect of the above facts. 3.2 No first information report was registered. 4. THE APPLICANT THEN APPROACHED THE SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE 4.1 Being aggrieved by that refusal, the Applicant made an application in writing to the Superintendent of Police under SECTION 173(4) of the Sanhita on [sp_application_date]. 4.2 A copy of that application, supported by the affidavit of the Applicant, is filed herewith and marked as an annexure to this application, as required by Section 175(3). 5. RESPONSE OF THE POLICE AUTHORITIES [police_response] 6. That despite the above, no investigation has been ordered or undertaken, and the Applicant is left without remedy save the intervention of this Hon'ble Court. 7. That the Applicant has approached this Hon'ble Court only after exhausting the remedies prescribed under Sections 173(1) and 173(4) of the Sanhita, and this application is accordingly maintainable under Section 175(3). 8. That this application is made bona fide, the allegations are true to the Applicant's knowledge, and nothing material has been concealed. PRAYER It is therefore most respectfully prayed that this Hon'ble Court may be pleased to: (a) Direct the officer in charge of [police_station] to register a first information report on the basis of the facts set out above and to investigate the same in accordance with law; (b) Call for a report from the said officer in charge; and (c) Pass such further orders as this Hon'ble Court may deem just and proper. AND FOR THIS ACT OF KINDNESS, THE APPLICANT SHALL EVER PRAY. Place: ______________ Date: [application_date] [applicant_name] APPLICANT Through ______________________ ADVOCATE ANNEXURES 1. Copy of the complaint made to the police station 2. Copy of the application to the Superintendent of Police under Section 173(4) 3. AFFIDAVIT of the Applicant in support of this application 4. Documents relied upon ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── YOU CANNOT COME STRAIGHT TO THE MAGISTRATE ANY MORE This is the change that catches people out, including people relying on older precedents, and it is a threshold objection rather than a technicality. Under the old Section 156(3) of the Criminal Procedure Code, an aggrieved person could apply to a Magistrate for a direction to investigate. That provision no longer exists. Its successor, SECTION 175(3) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, imposes three requirements the old law did not: 1. YOU MUST FIRST APPLY TO THE SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE under Section 173(4), and you must FURNISH A COPY of that application to the Magistrate, SUPPORTED BY AN AFFIDAVIT. This is now a mandatory statutory requirement, not merely good practice. An application that skips it is liable to be rejected without the merits being reached. 2. THE MAGISTRATE MAY HOLD AN INQUIRY before deciding whether to order an investigation. 3. THE MAGISTRATE MUST CONSIDER THE SUBMISSIONS OF THE POLICE OFFICER concerned before issuing any direction. The police now get to explain why they refused. The Supreme Court took judicial notice of all three in 2025, describing them as deliberate changes that place greater accountability on both the complainant and the police officer. SO THE SEQUENCE IS FIXED, AND EACH STEP MUST BE DOCUMENTED: Section 173(1) ask the police station to register the FIR Section 173(4) on refusal, apply IN WRITING to the Superintendent of Police — keep proof of despatch Section 175(3) only then apply to the Magistrate, annexing the SP application and an affidavit KEEP THE PAPER. The dated complaint, the SP application, the postal receipt and the affidavit are what make this application maintainable. Without them it is not a weak application; it is an incompetent one. A FALSE OR MALICIOUS APPLICATION carries consequences of its own. The affidavit requirement exists precisely to attach personal accountability to what you allege.