[SedanGuy]

Hello everyone I wanted to talk about how my wife's Honda Dio was stolen, found, and how difficult it is to traverse the Indian justice system.

Everything began on May 28th, 2022, when we left our beloved two-wheeler overnight parked outside our gate. We Currently have one covered parking space for a car and two covered parking for bikes and we own 2 cars and 2 bikes. We park the second car in front of the gate which houses the 2 wheelers. That night as usual, our second car was parked in front of the gate for two-wheelers, and we made the lazy choice to leave the scooter outdoors for the night. The scooter was gone when we got up the following morning. We were unable to obtain video of the incident because none of the homes or businesses in my lane had CCTV.

I went to the police station right away to report the scooter missing. This is when I realised the police dont just hand out FIRs. As soon as I reported the theft, the constable told me the inspector is on rounds and requested me to check a few police stations nearby to see if any of the officers have picked up any suspicious abandoned vehicles. I checked all of those stations, but the bike was nowhere to be seen. I reported the same at the station. Thankfully, the inspector had returned by that time. Instead of taking my complaint, it was advised that I wait for a week or so to see if it showed up anywhere. He kept telling me that once FIR is filed there are a lot of procedures and I will be stuck in court work for a long time. He promised to notify all stations of the missing vehicle and to get in touch with me if he heard anything.

I didn't have time to deal with this situation because I was in the middle of relocating my house. However, I would call the inspector for updates every few days and get no response. I also visited the station a total of four or five times, but each time I was told to wait. On my last day, I informed the officer that I needed to make an insurance claim and need FIR. He promised that if we don't locate it in the next two weeks, let's file a FIR. I did not have a comprehensive policy for the bike and knew it wont turn up. This was in July. More than 45 days had passed from the incident and I had lost patience with the cops. By that time, I had moved houses and needed to travel for work, so I gave up on the bike and declared it a total loss.

Fast forward to October and my wife gets a call and the caller id said it was a police officer. My wife gave the phone to me and sure enough it was an inspector from Tirunelveli. He informed us that they have found a scooter with wrong number plates which did not match the vehicle and based on engine number they identified my wife as the owner of the bike. He asked us to provide FIR or the complaint copy to start the legal process. We then were elated by the news but it was to be short lived. We immediately reached out to the police officer in Bangalore and informed him that we need the FIR. As soon as I told him about the FIR he started denying that he never interacted with me and I might have been mistaken. Clearly he was trying to shift the blame. However after some convincing he recollected me and told me that I should have followed up and raised the FIR. I don’t know how many more days I should have tried to get an FIR. Apparently 45+ days were not enough. To some extent I should have seen this through in the first place but I was dealing with cops for the first time in my life and it was frustrating to deal with such an inefficient group of people. Again after 3-4 visits and persuasion we were able to get the FIR.

We sent across the FIR to the cop from Tirunelveli in November after about 20 days of his first contact. We expected the bike to be handed over once we shared the FIR but we were so wrong. The cop then told us that in order to get the bike, Bangalore police has to come and complete legal process and take it back. In no circumstance was the bike to be released to the owner. I tried to speak to the Police here. I even offered to pay for their expense and they totally dismissed me saying you just visit Tirunelveli, they will release it. Thankfully I was able to find a family friend based out of Tirunelveli who visited the police station in person and spoke to them in Tamil and got clarification.

This is where the story gets absolutely bonkers. The cop who reached out to us had not let us in on the whole story. Apparently the bike was seized when the Tirunelveli cops had raided a local gangster who was wanted in all kinds of crimes. They had seized multiple vehicles which included our humble dio as well. We were one of the suspects in the case because there were no outstanding FIRs on the vehicle when it was found. Thank god that we acted swiftly and got the FIR which quashed their suspicions. Our bike was one of evidences for the crimes the person was accused for.

Our family friend involved a lawyer and filed a petition of getting our bike discharged from the impound lot. After a week the petition was accepted and bike was ordered to be released under a few conditions:
1. Vehicle will not be altered or sold until the case (criminal case on the gangster) is resolved.
2. Sign a bond of surety for Rs50,000/-
3. Agree to bring the vehicle and produce it in court every time its requested.

Failing which the owner will be held in contempt of court. This brings us to the current day. Now we don’t know how to proceed. The conundrum is that we have no contacts in Tirunelveli who can store the bike and produce in court every time its requested for. If we store it in Bangalore, we cant surely take the bike every time its requested in court. We don’t have the time to be in court that is 700 kms away. The criminal case can go on for years and we cant even sell the vehicle. However way we try to make sense of this situation its just going to end up being a costly affair for us. I fail to understand why a common man has to go through this ordeal when he is in no way related to the crime but rather a victim.

Thank you for reading my story. If you have suggestions, I am all ears.

Here’s how our bike looked when we got the pictures from the impound lot. Breaks our heart to see it in such a pity state. Last picture was a few months prior to the theft.

[iamswift]

Sad to read your story and hilights the pathetic condition of our judicial system which is stuck in 1900s.

I think you have two options.
1. Take back your vehicle back to Bangalore and pray that the court never calls you.
2. Leave your vehicle in the impound and forget it. Mentally you had written it off anyways.

I have a slight tilt towards first option. There is a good chance court/staff needn't inspect it and the call may never come.

How is the condition of your vehicle? Is it usable? Can it be returned back to its sheen? If not, better go for option-2.

[SedanGuy]

We were informed by the cops that the vehicle is not in running condition. I think we can bring it back to life considering its an Honda. Although we have already replaced this bike with a TVS iQube and we have moved into an apartment with limited parking space. We have reached out to the lawyer to find suitable solution here. I am open to keeping the bike in the impound lot as long as there are no legal repercussions and as stated I had written off the bike originally anyway. I have now spent close to half of its current value in legal fees and dont want to put more money if I am not able to sell and make something out of it.

[W.A.G.7]

Just yesterday evening, I was at the police station for verification of passport documents and there was a guy in a similar predicament as yours. Except his bike had been stolen yesterday morning. He was literally pleading with them for filing the FIR and they kept arguing with him. He was telling them, that his bike could be used by miscreants and then the onus would be on him to prove his innocence, but the officers refused to budge. They kept saying wait for 24 hours before filing the FIR. Honestly it’s unnerving, the police should be quick and responsive; ready to help. But on the contrary common people are made to run pillar to post for even the basic things.

From the condition of the Dio in photos, it looks badly abused now and wouldn’t be worthwhile to restore. However, if you are emotionally attached to it, then it’s a different story. I am not a legal expert but I feel don’t restore it, just keep it as it is till the court case is over. Then scrap it once the courts give the go ahead.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by SedanGuy

Instead of taking my complaint, it was advised that I wait for a week or so to see if it showed up anywhere. He kept telling me that once FIR is filed there are a lot of procedures and I will be stuck in court work for a long time.

Police are hesitant to straightaway file an FIR as it becomes an additional task & to-do list item for them. They have to submit reports on it. The process of opening & closing an FIR is cumbersome. And many times, the complaint solves itself within 7-14 days

But in such a situation:

- Try filing an FIR online

- Send a registered letter to the police station detailing the theft

- Physically submit the letter to the police station and take a "received" or "acknowledged" stamp from them on a copy of the letter

- Hire a lawyer

1. Vehicle will not be altered or sold until the case (criminal case on the gangster) is resolved.
2. Sign a bond of surety for Rs50,000/-
3. Agree to bring the vehicle and produce it in court every time its requested.

It's a cheap vehicle. Best, let it stay with the police only. You've anyway written it off as a total loss.

I fail to understand why a common man has to go through this ordeal when he is in no way related to the crime but rather a victim.

I completely understand your predicament. But from the court's point-of-view, it could be a vital piece of evidence in the story. Never know. The defense lawyer could point to a missing link in the chain to get an acquittal for the gangster.

[anjan_c2007]

A sad and shocking incident ! Was going through the behaviour of your local police station where the police inspector (PI) refused to register a FIR. In such cases there are two remedies. Theft is a cognisable offence under Section 379 of the IPC.

(1) Please meet the next higher authority (his appointment timings need to be known) in the police hierarchy, preferably the Dy Commissioner of Police (DCP) of the concerned jurisdiction, with a copy of the FIR and with an application addressed to him stating about the visits to the police station (date, time etc) and the refusal of the PI to register the complaint for unacceptable reasons. In your application to the DCP and in the FIR copy, special mention needs to be made of your apprehensions that your scooter could be used by anti-social elements to commit crimes for which the liability after seizure of the scooter by police and during investigations will lie upon me/ my wife the registered owner. After meeting the DCP the complaint has to be handed over to his office from where an acknowledgement with official seal and signature of the receiving clerk needs to be taken. This method usually works as on date, as most IPS officers reciprocate well to citizen's grievances.

(2) Next if the approach to police official/s does not work the next remedy lies in engaging a criminal lawyer, who practises in the Magistrate's Court (Judicial Magistrate of First Class (JMFC) at the respective District Court) with copies of the FIR stating about your attempts in vain to lodge the same. He will draft a petition seeking remedy under Section 156 (3) of the Criminal Procedure Code, stating the necessary facts which constitute an offence of cognizable nature. Here again special mention needs to be made of your apprehensions that your scooter could be used by anti-social elements to commit crimes for which the liability after seizure of the scooter by police and during investigations will lie upon me/ my wife the registered owner.

Section 156 (3): Theft, illegal entry and criminal trespass are cognizable offences against which either an FIR would lie or if the Police fails to register the FIR then a complaint under Section 156(3) CrPC read with Section 200 CrPC is to be filed.

The JMFC will hear all the concerned parties (police and your lawyer)Upon such perusal of the contents of the application/complaint, if the Magistrate (JMFC) is of the opinion that the facts mentioned in the application/complaint makes out a cognizable offence, he would direct the concerned police station to register an FIR, conduct investigation, and upon completion of the investigation, submit a report as envisaged under Section 173 of the CrPC.

[tud]

Originally Posted by SedanGuy

Our family friend involved a lawyer and filed a petition of getting our bike discharged from the impound lot. After a week the petition was accepted and bike was ordered to be released under a few conditions:
1. Vehicle will not be altered or sold until the case (criminal case on the gangster) is resolved.
2. Sign a bond of surety for Rs50,000/-
3. Agree to bring the vehicle and produce it in court every time its requested.

Failing which the owner will be held in contempt of court.

You have not just one but three reasons to let go of this bike. And all the three reasons are listed in your message above.

Originally Posted by SedanGuy

I did not have a comprehensive policy for the bike and knew it wont turn up.

I didnt quite understand this how are these two linked in any way? Sorry if you didnt mean to link them.

If you have given up on comprehensive cover and have only third party insurance for your bike, I guess it must be an old one. There is no point in spending anymore after seeing the condition of the bike in the impound shed. In your specific case, you have gotten a replacement bike and you have no use or space for this Dio. It is best to leave it in the impound shed under the custody of the cops and write off the bike on your books.

Next up: Engage a better lawyer and inform the court that you would rather take the bike once it is cleared of all the charges and you trust the bike to be with the cops till then and you are happy to take back the bike once the case is over and the bike is cleared. In your mind you already know that the case is not going to end soon, nor your bike going to stay as one piece till the case ends.

[Asoon]

This is sad but unfortunately this is the reality of Indian judicial / police system. Getting FIR registered is hell lot of a task. Number of FIR registered in a locality is the official metric of crime rate / performance of a particular police station. Hence they resist FIRs as it reflects on their performance.

Something similar happened with my friend few months back. His phone was snatched in HSR area and police as usual were not willing to acknowledge / register FIR. He had his bank logins / UPI, personal data and he was super serious about this. Luckily or unluckily the culprit was cought in some other area and he got a call from constable, constable showed him picture of his mobile and asked 6K bribe and said you just have to pict it. This fellow paid him and constable handed over details of the police station (outer bangalore, 40 Kms from where incident happened)

He travelled, and the real mess started. They told we have recovered 6 mobiles and we have registered the case (i do not believe this, filing charge-sheet in few hrs) , and all 6 devices are part of evidence and cannot be handed over, it will take another 45-90 days. Then they asked him to bring the same device (new model) and they will replace brand new model with his phone as a solution. This guy had previously lost his debit card was in dire need of the device to make UPI / other transaction, finally after spending 8 hrs in the police station and after multiple negotiation they handed over his phone after taking another 6K. A person who's phone was snatched on road had to spend 2-3 days outside office chasing multiple cops and to pay 12K for somethng where he was the victim.

The moral is, it is a waste of time and energy expecting the police to act

[charanreddy]

Originally Posted by SedanGuy

Failing which the owner will be held in contempt of court. This brings us to the current day. Now we don’t know how to proceed. The conundrum is that we have no contacts in Tirunelveli who can store the bike and produce in court every time its requested for. If we store it in Bangalore, we cant surely take the bike every time its requested in court. We don’t have the time to be in court that is 700 kms away. The criminal case can go on for years and we cant even sell the vehicle. However way we try to make sense of this situation its just going to end up being a costly affair for us. I fail to understand why a common man has to go through this ordeal when he is in no way related to the crime but rather a victim.

Thank you for reading my story. If you have suggestions, I am all ears.

Here’s how our bike looked when we got the pictures from the impound lot. Breaks our heart to see it in such a pity state. Last picture was a few months prior to the theft.

This serves as a good reminder why it is so important to follow up and get that FIR registered.

Also what was suspicious was the inspector calling you and informing of the vehicle. This almost never happens. What was really suspicious is the police checked the bike registration and engine number with out reason. There are guys who couldn’t be bothered to lift a finger if there is nothing in it for them. If the vehicle was clean a low level constable would have sold off or kept it for his use .

Here is what to do if police refuses FIR.

1. In places like bangalore , you can raise a report online. It is mentioned that this is for low level crimes only which theft may not be , but it serves as an electronic record that you informed the authorities of the theft.

2. Travel to your SP / DCP office and ask to raise a compliant. You will not be refused. It doesn’t matter to these guys if one police station gets one more FIR.

3. In Bangalore an email from a lady needs to be considered as an intimation to the police as though she has physically visited the police station. Here jurisdiction does not matter. Ask your mother or wife to email the SP of police with the details and the fact that the inspector refused to file FIR. The inspector
Will come running to your house .

4. If none of the above work, engage a lawyer and file a private complaint report (PCR). This serves as your intimation to the authorities and the judge may order the police to file FIR.

Make sure to file that FIR. At a later stage no one is going to believe you.


Regarding your current situation: Engage a lawyer in Tirunelveli court. Ask him to submit an application to discharge you from the proceedings and ask the court to take possession of the bike . Give them reasons like you are based in far off place and cannot visit .
These days courts are more open to video conferencing.

Unfortunately for no fault of yours, you are going to have to pay for the lawyers service. The cost of neglect is going to be higher as you have already found out. Think of cost of transporting the bike to and fro and the drain on your time .

Originally Posted by GTO

But in such a situation:

- Try filing an FIR online

- Send a registered letter to the police station detailing the theft

- Physically submit the letter to the police station and take a "received" or "acknowledged" stamp from them on a copy of the letter

- Hire a lawyer



It's a cheap vehicle. Best, let it stay with the police only. You've anyway written it off as a total loss.



I completely understand your predicament. But from the court's point-of-view, it could be a vital piece of evidence in the story. Never know. The defense lawyer could point to a missing link in the chain to get an acquittal for the gangster.

+1 to all of the above.

[The Rationalist]

If the police officer is not agreeing to make an FIR, just let him know that you are going to return with a lawyer. This is the best method, because in similar cases if the vehicle is used for any illegal activities or runs into accident, the owner will be liable for the repercussions. The police have more work than they can manage, but that’s not our headache, because they will wash their hands if anything goes wrong.

I have dealt with judiciary only once for a medico legal case, but that experience have made me realise that its next to impossible to change the archaic system. The case have been going on for 10 years, the last hearing was 5 years back! I feel sorry for the victim’s family, but since I was not the primary doctor I have no guilt feeling. But since I had seen the patient for cross-consultation I was dragged into the case. Luckily I had indemnity insurance (I don’t know why I took it because most doctors don’t take it, but I had taken it from the beginning of my career. may be the pessimist in me could have been the reason).

Coming to your case, leave the scooter at the impounded location. Write it off, else you are looking at a constant headache. Hope your hearing happens soon and the ordeal ends soon.

[Freespirit27]

A horrible ordeal, but considering the worst is over and you had reconciled to a total loss, just let it go.

Considerations being, make sure the impound storage should not be charged to you as you filed a petition for release!
Secondly, even if you were to get the vehicle at 50,000+legal+transportation+repair cost, you would not be able to sell it off as no NOC will be issued till case is settled!
Lessons learnt for all of us here, I guess.

[The Rationalist]

Originally Posted by Asoon

This is sad but unfortunately this is the reality of Indian judicial / police system. Getting FIR registered is hell lot of a task. Number of FIR registered in a locality is the official metric of crime rate / performance of a particular police station. Hence they resist FIRs as it reflects on their performance

Off topic: Kerala has the highest crime rates in India! I have seen people quoting this data and say that it’s unsafe. It’s just that people tend to register cases more than anywhere and police have to file FIR’s. Here also police are reluctant to file FIR, but people are aware of rights and don’t buck easily.

[HTC]

Sorry to hear about your ordeal. Already many have suggested various approaches. Pick which suits you best.

I always feel that out country is pseudo democracy. People do not have any 'Real' rights.
One more reason for cops discouraging FIR's is that it adds to count of crimes in their jurisdiction. That means the cops in that area station are not keeping the crime in check. This has impact on their transfer, promotion etc. More over, they have to work on solving that FIR which would consume their time and effort which can be used somewhere else for better returns (you can guess). Also they have a pack mentally. Though your logic is correct, whole force will stand united with the cops decision and support it till the end. There is no right or wrong here.

Let me not generalize whole police force, there are honest ones too. But majority seems other way. One advice I have gotten always is 'never get into anything legal'. But when your vehicle got stolen, there is nothing much you can do. Good luck buddy.

[MDED]

What a plight? The archaic Indian system of addressing the issues leaves the general public at the mercy of these “public” servants.

9/10 times approaching a senior cop, ACP or the DCP of the concerned area/jurisdiction helps. I can vividly remember few years back one of my friends maid had informed my friend that someone has kidnapped her son and have taken him to YPR station. My friend asked me, can I help? I immediately swung into action and called the GRP of YPR and intimated them and also established contact with ADGP railways of KSP and he directed his juniors on this job.

Fortunately, the boy was immediately traced to Mysuru with his father, but it’s worth the shot calling the top cops and they are bound to listen!!

[automind]

We all insure out vehicles, but most of us don’t read the terms and conditions of the contract of insurance. In case of theft of vehicle no police station will immediately register the FIR, so also many people do not intimate the insurance company immediately of the theft of vehicle. Reluctantly when the claim for reimbursement is filed, the insurance company will repudiate the claim citing that the delay in intimation has violated the terms and conditions of the contract of insurances, as on account of delayed intimation the insurance company was deprived of its legitimate right to get an inquiry conducted into alleged theft of vehicle and make an endeavor to recover same.
The Honorable supreme court on 11/02/2022 in the case of Jaina construction versus the oriental insurance company in civil appeal no. 1069 of 2022 has delivered judgment and held that, ‘if the theft of vehicle is genuine, the Insurance Company cannot repudiated the claim merely on the ground that there was a delay in intimating the Insurance Company about the occurrence of the theft’ One can always register of the theft of vehicle immediately in the police station’s Kaccha [temporary] register or sent online FIR, to avoid future complications.