The High Court’s clarification came while disposing of a PIL, which had challenged a police circular to its stations to stop use of 383 Urdu or Persian words while registering FIRs. The Delhi High Court Wednesday clarified that it had, in an earlier order, directed that police FIRs should be registered in a simple language, and that only archaic Urdu and Persian words need to be avoided. A bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice C Hari Shankar further clarified that Urdu and Persian words of general use can still be used by police while registering complaints. “Archaic Urdu and Persian words ought not to be utilised (while lodging FIRs) and that is what we intended to convey by our order of August 7 in a separate pending PIL before us. Urdu and Persian words of general use can be used,” the bench said. The High Court’s clarification came while disposing of a PIL, which had challenged a police circular to its stations to stop use of 383 Urdu or Persian words while registering FIRs. The petitioner, Naima Pasha, had claimed in the PIL that the circular was purportedly issued on the court’s August 7 direction. To this, the bench said it will clarify the order. In the other petition by advocate Vishalakshi Goel, the High Court had on November 25 called for 100 FIR copies to ascertain whether the circular of November 20 was being adhered to. Police submitted a copy of the FIRs before the court, which observed that words prohibited in the circular were still being used while registering complaints. The bench, however, observed that the police were taking steps in the right direction, noting that there was a decrease in usage of such terms. In August, the bench had observed, “The FIR is for the public… It should not be something for which one has to do a doctorate in Sanskrit, Urdu or Persian”.