Zero FIR

Facts for Prelims

Zero FIR

News: Recent incidents of violence and crime in Manipur have brought the concept of the ‘Zero First Information Report (FIR)’ into the spotlight.

What is Zero FIR?
• Zero FIR is a type of FIR that can be filed in any police station irrespective of the place of occurrence of the crime.
• The term ‘FIR’ stands for First Information Report which is filed before the police by the person approached to file the information.
• The only difference between an FIR and a Zero FIR is that an FIR is lodged as a complaint by the informant where the incident has occurred in the area in which the police station has the jurisdiction to conduct an investigation whereas a Zero FIR can be lodged in any police station irrespective of the incident happening anywhere.
• The concept of Zero FIR was mainly propounded to be inserted in the Criminal Law Amendment by Justice Verma’s Committee after the incident of the Nirbhaya Rape Case.
• The advantage of Zero FIR is that it avoids any kind of uncertain consumption of time and it also enables the police to conduct the investigation in a speedy manner.

Can you file an Online Zero FIR?
• Yes. There are a few states that have online portals for filing a Zero FIR. For example, Gujarat, MP, Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi.