Premier investigative agencies should ‘pick their battles’ as they have been ‘spread too thin’ and focus more on cases that threaten the national security and economic health of the country, Chief Justice DY Chandrachud said.
Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud on Monday said the premier investigative agencies should “pick their battles” as they have been “spread too thin”. He also said they should focus more on cases, which threaten the national security and economic health of the country, and public order.
“I think we have spread out our premier investigative agencies too thin. They must only focus on those crimes that concern national security, and crimes of economic offences against the nation,” DY Chandrachud said.
The CJI made the comments during his keynote address at the 20th DP Kohli Memorial lecture in memory of the first director of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
Chief Justice Chandrachud called for a “delicate balance” between the search and seizure powers vested with investigative agencies and an individual’s right to privacy.
“In the realm of criminal justice, the delicate balance between search and seizure powers and individual privacy rights stands and this is at the cornerstone of a fair and just society,” he said.
The CJI flagged delays as an “impediment” to justice delivery and called for a multi-pronged strategy to dispose of CBI cases.
“The accused are charged with serious violations of the law, and their life and reputation are altered and hurt. Delays become an impediment in justice delivery. A multi-pronged stretegy is needed to tackle slow disposal of CBI cases so that their pendency does not translate to guilt,” he was quoted as saying by Bar and Bench.
Chief Justice Chandrachud said there was an “unwarranted” confiscation of personal devices and stressed a balance between investigative imperatives and individual privacy rights.
“Instances of raids conducted and unwanted confiscation of personal devices highlight the pressing need to balance investigative imperatives and privacy rights.”
Underlining that the landscape of crime was evolving at an “unprecedented pace”, the CJI said that probe agencies should build their capacities and use Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools to solve cases.
