KSLU Solved Question Papers
Criminal Law II
Previous Year Question Paper with Solution
B.A. LL.B. (Five Years) · Sem 7
2014 Dec Examination
munotes.in
Mumbai
B.A. LL.B. (Five Years) Sem 7 Criminal Law II 2014 Dec Question Paper with Solutions
First published on munotes.in on 21 October 2026.
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The question paper reproduced here is the paper as set by Karnataka State Law University at the 2014 Dec examination.
Contents
The questions below are the paper as Karnataka State Law University set it at the 2014 Dec examination, in the order it was set.
MarksPage
MarksPage
The Paper as Set
The questions in this volume are the questions asked at the 2014 Dec examination, reproduced as Karnataka State Law University set them, in the order it set them. Long reading passages are shortened to their first and last lines and our summary; the original paper prints them in full. Only the answers are ours. See the original question paper.
Duration 3 hours · Total marks 100 · 13 questions answered
How to use this volume
Solve the paper first, under exam conditions and against the clock. Then read the answers here and mark your own. Reading a solution before attempting the question feels productive and teaches very little, because recognising an answer is not the same as being able to write one.
Q1Discuss the constitution and powers of Criminal Courts.[16]
Answer
For full marks, cover: the source of criminal jurisdiction (only statute); Part I, constitution: the separation of judicial and executive magistracy, the classes of courts (section 6), territorial divisions (sections 7 and 8), each court with the section creating it and its appointing authority (sections 9 to 23), subordination, and the prosecutors (sections 24 to 25A); Part II, powers: offences triable by each court (section 26), cognizance and commitment (sections 190, 193 and 209), sentencing powers (sections 28 and 29), default sentences and several offences (sections 30 and 31), the other powers of each court, and how powers are conferred and withdrawn (sections 32 to 35); the leading cases; criticism; the matching sections of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023; a conclusion.
Jurisdiction comes only from law
A criminal court has only the powers that the Constitution or a statute gives it. No court, however high, can confer on itself or on another court a power the law withholds. The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 is the main statute that creates the ordinary criminal courts and states what each may do. Chapter II creates them; Chapter III defines their powers.
Part I: Constitution of the courts
Separation of the two wings. Article 50 of the Constitution asks the State to separate the judiciary from the executive. The Code therefore has two kinds of Magistrates. Judicial Magistrates, controlled by the High Court, try offences. Executive Magistrates, controlled by the State Government, deal with public order.
Classes (section 6). Besides the High Courts and courts under other laws, every State has four classes of criminal court. They are Courts of Session, first class Judicial Magistrates (Metropolitan Magistrates in metropolitan areas), second class Judicial Magistrates, and Executive Magistrates.
Courts under other laws. Section 6 also saves courts created by other statutes. Examples are Special Judges under the Prevention of Corruption Act, Special Courts under the POCSO Act and the NDPS Act, and Juvenile Justice Boards. These courts follow the Code except where their own Act provides otherwise (section 4(2)).
Territorial divisions (sections 7 and 8). The State, after consulting the High Court, divides itself into sessions divisions, and these into districts and sub-divisions. A city of over ten lakh people may be declared a metropolitan area.
The courts at a glance.
| Court | Section | Created or appointed by | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Court of Session | 9 | State creates; High Court appoints the Sessions, Additional and Assistant Sessions Judges | One for each sessions division |
| Judicial Magistrates, first and second class | 11 | State creates after consulting the High Court; High Court appoints | Special courts for particular cases may be set up |
| Court | Section | Created or appointed by | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chief Judicial Magistrate | 12 | High Court | One in each district; also Additional CJM and Sub-divisional Judicial Magistrates |
| Special Judicial Magistrate | 13 | High Court, at the Government's request | Serving or retired officials, for up to a year at a time |
| Metropolitan Magistrates | 16 to 18 | State creates; High Court appoints | One is the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate |
| Executive Magistrates | 20 to 22 | State Government | One is the District Magistrate |
Subordination. Assistant Sessions Judges answer to the Sessions Judge (section 10). Judicial Magistrates answer to the Chief Judicial Magistrate, who answers to the Sessions Judge (section 15). Metropolitan Magistrates answer to the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (section 19). Executive Magistrates answer to the District Magistrate (section 23).
Prosecutors (sections 24 to 25A). Public Prosecutors are appointed for the High Court and each district, and Assistant Public Prosecutors for Magistrates' courts. A State may create a Directorate of Prosecution.
Part II: Powers of the courts
1. Which court tries which offence (section 26). A Penal Code offence may be tried by the High Court, the Court of Session, or the court shown in the First Schedule. An offence under another law goes to the court that law names, or else to the High Court or the court in the Schedule. Rape cases are tried, as far as practicable, by a court presided over by a woman.
2. Cognizance and commitment (sections 190, 193 and 209). A Magistrate takes cognizance on a complaint, a police report or his own knowledge. A Court of Session cannot take cognizance as a court of first instance, unless the Code or another law allows. A Magistrate commits the case to it.
3. Sentencing powers (sections 28 and 29).
| Court | Highest sentence |
|---|---|
| High Court | Any sentence the law allows |
| Sessions Judge, Additional Sessions Judge | Any lawful sentence; death needs the High Court's confirmation |
| Court | Highest sentence |
|---|---|
| Assistant Sessions Judge | Up to ten years; not death or life |
| Chief Judicial or Metropolitan Magistrate | Up to seven years; not death or life |
| First class Magistrate | Three years, a fine of ten thousand rupees, or both |
| Second class Magistrate | One year, a fine of five thousand rupees, or both |
4. Default and several offences (sections 30 and 31). A sentence in default of fine must stay within the Magistrate's powers, and within one-fourth of his maximum where there is also a jail term. When sentences for several offences run consecutively, the total may exceed one offence's limit. But it may not exceed fourteen years, or twice what the court can pass for one offence.
5. Other powers of each court.
- High Court. Appeals, revisions, references, transfers, bail and anticipatory bail, confirmation of death sentences, and the inherent power to prevent abuse (section 482).
- Court of Session. Sessions trials, appeals from Magistrates, revisions, transfers within the division, and bail.
- Chief Judicial Magistrate. Distribution of work, sentencing in cases sent up under section 325, withdrawal and recall of cases (section 410), and summary trials.
- Judicial Magistrates. Cognizance, remand (section 167), summons and warrant trials, committal, and maintenance orders.
- Executive Magistrates. Security for keeping the peace, removal of public nuisances, urgent orders, land disputes and inquests. They do not try offences.
6. Conferring and withdrawing powers (sections 32 to 35). The High Court or State confers powers by name or by office (section 32). It may withdraw them (section 34). A successor in office may exercise the powers of the officer he replaces (section 35).
The leading cases
Facts. In A.R. Antulay v. R.S. Nayak, (1988) 2 SCC 602, decided on 29 April 1988, a former Chief Minister was being tried for corruption. In 1984 the Supreme Court had transferred his case from the Special Judge to the High Court. But the Criminal Law Amendment Act, 1952 required such offences to be tried by a Special Judge.
Held. A seven-Judge Bench held the transfer without jurisdiction. "The power to create or enlarge jurisdiction is legislative in character." No court can give a court a jurisdiction the law does not give. The proceedings after the 1984 direction were set aside.
Why it bears. It shows that the constitution and powers of criminal courts rest wholly on statute.
Facts. In Gangula Ashok v. State of Andhra Pradesh, (2000) 2 SCC 504, decided on 28 January 2000, the police filed a charge-sheet straight in a Sessions Court. That court had been designated a Special Court under the SC and ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.
Held. A Special Court under that Act is essentially a Court of Session. By section 193, it can take cognizance only when a Magistrate commits the case to it. A charge-sheet cannot go straight to it. Parliament later amended that Act in 2016 to let Exclusive Special Courts take cognizance directly. The general rule in section 193 remains.
Why it bears. It applies the rule that a Court of Session needs a commitment.
Criticism
- Vacancies and heavy pendency in Magistrates' courts slow every trial.
- Executive Magistrates' powers to keep the peace are sometimes used against protesters and the poor.
- Sentencing limits and fine ceilings fixed decades ago lag behind the value of money.
Under the Sanhita
From 1 July 2024, sections 6 to 20 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 deal with the courts and prosecutors. Sections 21 to 29 deal with their powers. Metropolitan Magistrates and Assistant Sessions Judges are abolished. Section 23 raises Magistrates' fines to fifty thousand and ten thousand rupees and adds community service. Section 25 raises the cap on consecutive sentences to twenty years.
Conclusion. The Code builds a two-winged system of criminal courts. Judicial courts, from the Court of Session to the second class Magistrate, are appointed by and answer to the High Court. Executive Magistrates keep order under the District Magistrate. Each court may try the offences and pass the sentences the Code allows, and no more. A.R. Antulay shows that jurisdiction can come only from the law. Gangula Ashok shows the Court of Session waiting for a commitment before it acts.
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