IndiaLaw and crime
Supreme Court says only Appropriate Authority can investigate illegal sex determination cases
The Supreme Court ruled that police cannot independently investigate offences under the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act, saying the responsibility lies with the Appropriate Authority. The ruling settles a disagreement among High Courts.
The Supreme Court on August 20, 2026, ruled that the police cannot independently investigate offences relating to illegal prenatal sex determination under the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act, 1994. Instead, the responsibility lies primarily with the Appropriate Authority, a specialised body constituted under the law. The judgment, authored by a Bench of Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice Nongmeikapam Kotiswar Singh, settles a long-standing disagreement among High Courts over whether police could register FIRs and investigate such offences because they are classified as 'cognisable' and 'non-bailable'. The case arose from an allegation of illegal sex determination of a foetus at a hospital in Bulandshahar, Uttar Pradesh.
IndiaLaw and crime
Supreme Court says only Appropriate Authority can investigate illegal sex determination cases
The Supreme Court ruled that police cannot independently investigate offences under the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act, saying the responsibility lies with the Appropriate Authority. The ruling settles a disagreement among High Courts.
The Supreme Court on August 20, 2026, ruled that the police cannot independently investigate offences relating to illegal prenatal sex determination under the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act, 1994. Instead, the responsibility lies primarily with the Appropriate Authority, a specialised body constituted under the law. The judgment, authored by a Bench of Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice Nongmeikapam Kotiswar Singh, settles a long-standing disagreement among High Courts over whether police could register FIRs and investigate such offences because they are classified as 'cognisable' and 'non-bailable'. The case arose from an allegation of illegal sex determination of a foetus at a hospital in Bulandshahar, Uttar Pradesh.