The lower courts' "practice" of seeking status reports from police on a complaint for lodging of a case, thus making them probe the matter even before registration of FIR, has been slammed by a Delhi court as "alien" to law.

Additional sessions judge (ASJ) Surinder S Rathi censured trial courts' penchant for seeking status reports from police, while setting aside a metropolitan magistrate's order which had dismissed the plea of a Faridabad resident seeking a probe into his son's death near the residence of his estranged wife and her parents at Nizamuddin in South Delhi.

The magistrate had dismissed Faridabad resident P J Mandal's plea for a probe into his son's death after asking for a status report from the police on his complaint.

"The practice of calling of status report is alien to Criminal Procedure Code. Once a complaint disclosing commission of cognisable offence is received by a magistrate, decision shall be arrived at only on the basis of the material placed before him," said ASJ Rathi.

"The act of making the police investigate (a case) in a de facto manner in the name of status report is ultra vires to the law," he added.

While quashing the magisterial court order, the sessions court directed in-charge of police station at Hazarat Nizammuddin railway station to lodge a first information report (FIR) on Mandal's complaint and probe it "thoroughly".

Mandal had moved the sessions court challenging the April 3, 2010 order of the magisterial court which had dismissed his plea for probe into his son's death.

Mandal told the court that his son Praful was married in 2003 to Nizamuddin resident Monika. The couple would have frequent quarrels after Praful came to know about her affair with another man.

Mandal claimed that Monika would often leave his son after fighting with him, but would return following intervention by elders. He said she left his son again in August 2008 for her parental home in Nizamuddin.

He alleged that as Praful went after her to persuade her to return, he was severely beaten by Monika and her family members and his body was found next morning on August 30, 2008 at railway tracks near Hazarat Nizammuddin Railway Station.

After making several complaints before the police and concerned authorities for registration of the FIR, Mandal moved the magisterial court, which too dismissed his plea on basis of a status report called by it.

The sessions court, however, set aside the magistrate's order, saying, "The circumstances surrounding the death reveal it was not a natural accidental death. The impugned order is hereby set aside. SHO police staton Hazarat Nizamuddin railway station is hereby directed to register FIR under appropriate sections and investigate the matter thoroughly," the ASJ said.