Charge Sheet

CrPC Section 173 / BNSS Section 230

The formal document filed by police (also called a "challan" or police report under Section 173 CrPC / Section 230 BNSS) after completing investigation of a cognisable offence. The charge sheet sets out the offences alleged, evidence gathered, names of accused, and list of witnesses. A copy is served on the accused. The Magistrate takes cognizance on the charge sheet and the trial begins.

In practice, the charge sheet (the police report under Section 173 CrPC, now Section 230 BNSS) is the document that converts an investigation into a prosecutable case. Until it is filed, there is only an FIR and an investigation; once filed, the Magistrate takes cognizance and the trial machinery starts. For an accused in a bank-fraud or economic-offence matter, the charge sheet is the first complete picture of the case against them — the offences alleged, the witnesses listed, and the documentary evidence relied on — and a copy must be supplied. Defence counsel reads it forensically: gaps in the evidence, missing sanction, or weak material become the foundation for a discharge application before charges are framed. The flip side is the statutory consequence of delay — if the charge sheet is not filed within the prescribed period, the accused becomes entitled to default bail. Getting the contents and timing wrong cuts both ways, so well-advised parties scrutinise the charge sheet line by line on receipt.