Devinder Singh & Ors vs State Of Punjab Through Cbi

The Supreme Court held that under Section 6 of the Punjab Disturbed Areas Act, 1983, prior sanction from the Central Government is required for prosecuting police officers for actions taken in the course of their official duties. The Court found that the allegations of a fake encounter did not exempt the requirement for sanction, thus the prosecution initiated without such sanction was deemed illegal. The Court upheld the necessity of following statutory provisions for prosecution, leading to the dismissal of the appeals by the police officers.