In Brief
Police officers prosecuted for alleged fake encounters sought to quash proceedings, arguing they acted in official capacity and required governmental sanction before prosecution. The Supreme Court held that the characterization of an incident as a "fake encounter" does not determine sanction requirements at inception. The Court established that sanction necessity must be revisited at various trial stages based on emerging evidence. The trial court should proceed on the prosecution's version initially but remain open to examining whether a reasonable nexus exists between the acts and official duty. If such connection is established through evidence, sanction becomes mandatory regardless of the "fake encounter" label. The court remanded for fresh examination of the sanction question in light of proper legal principles, directing the trial to proceed while leaving sanction determination flexible across different stages.
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