The Supreme Court, in Brijendra Singh vs State of Rajasthan, has observed that the degree of satisfaction to exercise power under Section 319 CrPC to summon persons not arraigned as accused is more than the degree warranted at the time of framing of the charges against others in respect of whom charge sheet was filed. A bench headed by Justice AK Sikri observed that the prima facie opinion which is to be formed for exercising this power under Section 319 CrPC requires stronger evidence than mere probability of his complicity. In the instant case, some persons, who were named in the FIR, were not arraigned as accused in the charge sheet since the investigating officer found that they were in Jaipur city when the incident took place in Kanaur. During their examination in chief, the complainants reiterated the statements they made to the police and on that basis, the trial court, exercising its powers under Section 319 CrPC, summoned these persons. The high court also rejected their p...