Panchanama: A Procedural Constant!

By: Adv. Vinayak D. Porob

A Panchanama occupies a central and indispensable position in the criminal justice framework. It reflects, with clarity and precision, the fairness and diligence exercised by the investigating agency. Once duly proved, a Panchanama becomes a compelling indicator of the authenticity of the investigative process and substantially strengthens the prosecution’s case.

In its simplest sense, a Panchanama is a contemporaneous written record of observations made in the presence of independent witnesses. In criminal law, it denotes the documentary memorandum prepared by the police during investigation, deriving its authority from procedural mandates. Although the term Panchanama does not find explicit definition in the BNSS, its existence and significance are implicitly