#CrPC 227

The Karnataka High Court refused to discharge the accused, confirming that a caste-based insult made in public fulfills the prima facie requirement for an offence under Section 3(1)(r) of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and IPC 504. This clarifies that such public insults alone can sustain charge-framing, impacting future prosecutions involving caste slurs.

HP High Court clarifies that framing charges under CrPC 227 requires only a prima facie case, not corroboration by recovered evidence. Witness testimony linking an accused to digital content-even if the original video is not recovered from their device-is sufficient to proceed with charges under POCSO and IT Act.

The Himachal Pradesh High Court ruled that under CrPC 227, a trial court may frame charges based on grave suspicion even if medical opinions conflict, reinforcing that prima facie evidence need not be conclusive. This decision clarifies that the threshold for proceeding to trial is lower than proof beyond reasonable doubt, impacting criminal proceedings where forensic evidence is disputed.