The argument of the petitioner that he was remanded to custody under Section 167(2) CrPC by the special judge at Ernakulam and, therefore, the special judge at Lucknow has no jurisdiction, the Court said that the said argument is not legally founded.
In this regard, the Court highlighted the timeline of events, where the petitioner was arrested in Kerala and, hence, he was produced before the Magistrate in Kerala, who remanded him to judicial custody. Thereafter, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) moved an application under Section 167 CrPC before the Principal Sessions Judge, Ernakulam for the grant of ED custody.
Therefore, while emphasising that an order under Section 167(2) CrPC had to be passed necessarily by the Magistrate to whom an accused person is forwarded, the Court was of the view that there is no legally valid and justifiable grounds to order transfer of complaint.
Source: Barandbench
