A written document prepared by the police hen they receive information about the commission of a cognizable offence. It is a report of information that reaches the police first in point of time and that is why it is called the First Information Report. It is generally a complaint lodged with the police by the victim of a cognizable offence or by someone on his/her behalf. Anyone can report the commission of a cognizable offence either orally or in writing to the police.

FIR does not contain detailed facts of the prosecution case. Its main purpose is to give information of a cognizable offence to the police and set the law in action. [Ataur Rahman vs. State 43 DLR 87]

FIR is not a substantive piece of evidence. It is used as a means for corroborating or contradicting the statement of the informant. [Dipok Kumar Sarkar vs. The State 8 BCR 141 AD]

See, Section 154 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 (v of 1898).