The Himachal Pradesh High Court has held that a complainant may invoke Section 193(9) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 to seek further investigation even after the filing of a charge-sheet, provided the application is made before the framing of charges. The Court set aside an order of the Additional Sessions Judge, Paonta Sahib, which had dismissed the complainant's application on the grounds that it was filed post-cognizance and that only the investigating agency could seek further investigation. Relying on the Supreme Court's three-judge bench decision in Vinubhai Haribhai Malaviya v. State of Gujarat and Rampal Gautam v. State, the Court ruled that the earlier precedent in Amrutbhai Shambhubhai Patel had been overruled to the extent it barred complainant-initiated further investigation. The Court directed the investigating agency to complete further investigation within ninety days, particularly regarding the mobile phones of the accused that allegedly recorded the incident.
