Introduction: In an important restatement of the magistrate’s judicial powers in the criminal justice process, on November 4, 2025, the Supreme Court clarified that once the claims in a complaint reveal the commission of a cognizable offence, a magistrate is competent to direct FIR registration under Section 156(3) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (now Section 175(3) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023). This landmark judgment reinforces the principle that
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