How to File an FIR, Zero FIR or e-FIR
Step-by-step guide to filing an FIR under the BNSS – Zero FIR, e-FIR, free copy of FIR, and what to do if the police refuse to register your complaint.
Read the guide →Falsely Implicated, Harassed by Police or Threatened? Your Legal Remedies
The law gives ordinary citizens strong protection against false cases, police excesses and intimidation by influential people. This guide explains the remedies available and how quickly to use them.
Last reviewed: October 2026 · General information only, not legal advice.
First Steps: Stay Calm and Preserve Evidence
- Do not argue, resist or sign any paper you have not read. You have the right to remain silent Art. 20(3).
- Record dates, times, names and badge numbers of officers, vehicle numbers and witnesses.
- Keep call recordings, messages, CCTV footage and medical reports. Ask nearby shops or societies to preserve CCTV footage quickly — it is often overwritten within days.
- Send your version in writing (email and speed post) to the SHO and the senior officers, so that there is a dated record.
- Contact a lawyer early. Most remedies are far more effective before arrest or before a charge-sheet is filed.
If a False FIR Is Filed Against You
1. Anticipatory bail
If you apprehend arrest in a non-bailable offence, you can apply to the Sessions Court or High Court for anticipatory bail BNSS 482. Courts may grant interim protection while the application is decided. Read our bail guide →
2. Notice instead of arrest
For offences punishable with up to 7 years, the police should ordinarily issue a notice to appear rather than arrest BNSS 35(3), following the Supreme Court's directions in Arnesh Kumar v. State of Bihar (2014). Comply with the notice and join the investigation.
3. Quashing of the FIR by the High Court
The High Court can quash an FIR or criminal proceedings that are an abuse of process — for example where the allegations, even if accepted, disclose no offence, where a civil dispute has been given a criminal colour, or where the case is manifestly malicious BNSS 528; Art. 226. The Supreme Court laid down these categories in State of Haryana v. Bhajan Lal (1992).
4. Placing your defence before the investigating officer
Submit documents and evidence showing your innocence — location records, bank records, CCTV, witnesses — and request that they be considered in the investigation.
5. Action against the false complainant
Once the case fails, the law provides remedies against those who lodged it falsely: prosecution for a false charge made with intent to injure BNS 248, false information to a public servant BNS 217, and a civil suit for damages for malicious prosecution.
If You Face Police Harassment or Excess
- Illegal detention: If someone is detained without being produced before a Magistrate within 24 hours, a habeas corpus petition can be filed in the High Court or Supreme Court Art. 226; Art. 32.
- Custodial violence: Causing hurt to extort a confession is a serious offence BNS 120. A judicial inquiry is mandatory in cases of death, disappearance or rape in custody BNSS 196(2). Get a medical examination done immediately BNSS 53.
- Complaint to senior officers: Write to the SP / DCP and Commissioner of Police with full details.
- Police Complaints Authority: States are required to have a Police Complaints Authority for serious misconduct (directed by the Supreme Court in Prakash Singh, 2006). Delhi has one; check the position in your state.
- Human Rights Commissions: Complaints of human rights violations by police can be made to the NHRC or the State Human Rights Commission, including online.
- Compensation: Courts award compensation for custodial violence and illegal detention (Nilabati Behera, 1993; D.K. Basu, 1997).
- Private complaint to the Magistrate: Where police refuse to act against one of their own, a complaint can be filed directly before the Magistrate BNSS 223.
If You Are Threatened by Influential People or Criminals
- Call 112 in an emergency.
- File a complaint for criminal intimidation BNS 351 and any other offence (trespass, hurt, extortion BNS 308). Insist on an FIR; if refused, follow the steps in our FIR guide.
- Apply for police protection to the SP / DCP in writing, setting out the threat and supporting evidence.
- Writ petition for protection: If the police do not act, the High Court can direct protection under Art. 226. Courts regularly order protection for persons facing threats to life and liberty.
- Witness protection: Witnesses facing threats can seek protection under the Witness Protection Scheme BNSS 398.
- Civil remedies: Where threats relate to property or business, a civil court can grant an injunction restraining the other side from interfering.
The status or influence of the other side does not change your rights. Courts treat threats to life, liberty and property seriously, and a properly documented application is the most effective protection.
Frequently Asked Questions
How can a false FIR be quashed?
A petition can be filed before the High Court under Section 528 of the BNSS (earlier Section 482 CrPC) or Article 226 of the Constitution. The High Court may quash the FIR if the allegations do not disclose an offence, the dispute is purely civil, or the proceedings are manifestly malicious or an abuse of process.
Can I get anticipatory bail before an FIR is registered?
Yes. Anticipatory bail can be sought where there is a reasonable apprehension of arrest for a non-bailable offence, even before an FIR is registered, provided the apprehension is based on concrete facts.
What can I do if the police detain someone illegally?
A habeas corpus petition can be filed in the High Court under Article 226 or the Supreme Court under Article 32. Complaints can also be made to senior police officers, the Police Complaints Authority and the Human Rights Commission, and compensation may be claimed.
How do I get police protection if I am being threatened?
Give a written complaint with evidence of the threat to the SHO and the SP or DCP, asking for registration of an FIR and for protection. If no action is taken, the High Court can be approached by a writ petition for directions to provide protection.
Can I take action against someone who filed a false case against me?
Yes. Making a false charge of an offence with intent to cause injury is punishable under Section 248 of the BNS, and a civil suit for damages for malicious prosecution can be filed once the case ends in your favour.
Need advice on your matter?
Every case turns on its own facts. Speak to Advocate Ajay Mishra for advice specific to your situation — in person at IP Extension (Delhi) or Vaishali (Ghaziabad), by phone, or by video call.