New Delhi- A prosecutor is an officer of the court who has the duty to act in the interest of justice and not with the sole aim of securing a conviction of the accused, the Supreme Court has said.

A bench of Justices Sanjay Karol and N Kotiswar Singh made the observation while setting aside the convictions of three individuals in a murder case.

The petitioners alleged non-compliance with Section 313 of the CrPC. This provision of the Criminal Procedure Code, 1973, bestows upon the court the power to examine the accused with respect to the evidence which has been produced.

“It is equally disturbing for us to see that in the desire to secure a conviction for the accused persons, the prosecutor also let their duty of assisting the court in conducting the examination of the accused under this section fall by the wayside,: the bench said.

“The prosecutor is an officer of the court and holds a solemn duty to act in the interest of justice. They cannot act as a defence lawyer, but for the State, with the sole aim of making the gauntlet of punishment fall on the accused,” it said.

The top court was hearing a plea filed by the three accused challenging an order of the Patna High Court, which upheld their conviction in a murder case.

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