Kerala HC says investigating officer can also be appointed as prosecutor in court-martial case as per Navy regulations

The Kerala High Court recently held that an investigating officer can be appointed as a prosecutor in a court-martial case as per the Navy (Discipline and Miscellaneous Provisions) Regulations, 1965, and that it would not violate the accused person’s fundamental right to a fair trial.

The Division Bench of Justices K. Natarajan and Johnson John held that a combined analysis of the Constitution of India, the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, the Navy Act, 1957 and the Navy Regulations would indicate that, in matters of the armed forces, there are restrictions imposed on the fundamental rights of military personnel. In such cases, the prosecutor and the investigating officer in a court-martial case could be competent witnesses. The court inferred that even if the investigating officer is appointed as the prosecutor, he could be examined as a witness.