An accused can force the court to consider evidence the police never filed, in order to get discharged.

Courts have held the discharge stage generally looks only at what the prosecution has already placed on record, not material the accused wants investigated further.

Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023

Section 262

When accused shall be discharged

(1) The accused may prefer an application for discharge within a period of sixty days from the date of supply of copies of documents under section 230.§

(2) If, upon considering the police report and the documents sent with it under section 193 and making such examination, if any, of the accused, either physically or through audio-video electronic means, as the Magistrate thinks necessary and after giving the prosecution and the accused an opportunity of being heard, the Magistrate considers the charge against the accused to be groundless, he shall discharge the accused, and record his reasons for so doing.§

Why this exists

This screens out weak or baseless cases early, before an accused person is put through the burden and stigma of a full trial, while giving him a clear 60-day window (a BNSS addition) to formally seek this relief. It mirrors section 239 of the earlier Code of Criminal Procedure.

How courts read it

Under the equivalent CrPC provision, the Supreme Court, in State of Orissa v. Debendra Nath Padhi, held that at the discharge stage the accused generally cannot ask the court to look at material the prosecution has not itself produced - the Magistrate weighs only the police report and the documents already on record, not a fishing expedition into unfiled evidence, though courts retain the discretion to examine the accused where necessary.

Common misconceptions

Myth: An accused can force the court to consider evidence the police never filed, in order to get discharged.
Fact: Courts have held the discharge stage generally looks only at what the prosecution has already placed on record, not material the accused wants investigated further.