Report No. 41
Annexure
(As proposed to be revised)
Chapter III
Powers of Courts
28. Courts by which offences are triable.- Subject to the other provisions of this Code.-
(a) any offence under the Indian Penal Code may be tried by the High Court or by the Court of Sessions or by any other Court by which such offence is shown in the Second Schedule to be triable; and
(b) any offence under any other law shall, when any Court is mentioned in this behalf in such law, be tried by such Court, and when no Court is so mentioned, it may be tried by the High Court or by any Court by which such offence is shown in the Second Schedule to be triable.
29B. Jurisdiction in the case of juveniles.- Any offence not punishable with death or imprisonment for life, committed by any person who at the date when he appears or is brought before the Court is under the age of fifteen years, may be trie.-
(a) by a Chief Metropolitan Magistrate or Chief Judicial Magistrate, or
(b) by a Metropolitan Magistrate or Magistrate of the first class specially empowered under su.-section (1) of section 8 of the Reformatory Schools Act, 1897, or under other similar law providing for the custody, trial or punishment of youthful offenders.
30. Jurisdiction of Chief Magistrates.- Notwithstanding anything contained in section 28, a Chief Metropolitan Magistrate or Chief Judicial Magistrate may try all offences not punishable with death or with imprisonment for life or with imprisonment exceeding seven years.
31. Sentence which High Courts and Sessions Judges may pass.- (1) A High Court may pass any sentence authorised by law.
(2) A Sessions Judge or Additional Sessions Judge may pass any sentence authorised by law; but any sentence of death passed by him shall be subject to confirmation by the High Court.
(3) An Assistant Sessions Judge may pass any sentence authorised by law except a sentence of death or of imprisonment for life or of imprisonment for a term exceeding ten years.
32. Sentences which Magistrates may pass.- (1) A Chief Metropolitan Magistrate or Chief Judicial Magistrate may pass any sentence authorised by law except a sentence of death or of imprisonment for life or of imprisonment for a term exceeding seven years.
(2) A Metropolitan Magistrate or Magistrate of the first class may pass a sentence of imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years, including such solitary confinement as is authorised by law, or of fine not exceeding five thousand rupees, or of both.
(3) A Magistrate of the second class may pass a sentence of imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year, including such solitary confinement as is authorised by law, or of fine not exceeding one thousand rupees, or of both.
33. Sentence of imprisonment in default of fine.- (1) A Magistrate may award such term of imprisonment in default of payment of fine as is authorised by law:
Provided that the ter.-
(a) is not in excess of the Magistrate's powers under section 32; and
(b) where imprisonment has been awarded as part of the substantive sentence, shall not exceed on.-fourth of the term of imprisonment which the Magistrate is competent to inflict as punishment for the offence otherwise than as imprisonment in default of payment of the fine.
(2) The imprisonment awarded under this section may be in addition to a substantive sentence of imprisonment for the maximum term awardable by the Magistrate under section 32.
34. (Omitted).
35. Sentence in cases of conviction of several offences at one trial.- (1) When a person is convicted at one trial of two or more offences, the Court may, subject to the provisions of section 71 of the Indian Penal Code, sentence him for such offences, to the several punishments prescribed therefor which such Court is competent to inflict; such punishments when consisting of imprisonment to commence the one after the expiration of the other in such order as the Court may direct, unless the Court directs that such punishments shall run concurrently.
(2) In the case of consecutive sentences, it shall not be necessary for the Court, by reason only of the aggregate punishment for the several offences being in excess of the punishment which it is competent to inflict on conviction of a single offence to send the offender for trial before a higher Court:
Provided tha.-
(a) in no case shall such person be sentenced to imprisonment for a longer period than fourteen years; and
(b) the aggregate punishment shall not exceed twice the amount of punishment which the Court is competent to inflict for a single offence.
(3) For the purpose of appeal by a convicted person, the aggregate of consecutive sentence passed against him under this section shall be deemed to be a single sentence.
36. (Omitted).
37. (Omitted).
38. (Omitted).
39. Mode of conferring powers.- (1) In conferring powers under this Code, the High Court or the State Government, as the case may be, may, by order, empower persons specially by name or in virtue of their office, or classes of officials generally by their official titles.
(2) Every such order shall take effect from the date on which it is communicated to the person so empowered.
40. Powers of officers appointed.- Whenever any person holding an office in the service of Government who has been invested by the High Court or the State Government with any powers under this Code throughout any local area is appointed to an equal or higher office of the same nature within a like local area under the same State Government, he shall, unless the High Court or the State Government, as the case may be, otherwise directs or has otherwise directed, exercise the same powers in the local area in which he is so appointed.
41. Withdrawal of powers.- (1) The High Court or the State Government, as the case may be, may withdraw all or any of the powers conferred under this Code on any person by it or by any officer subordinate to it.
(2) Any powers conferred by the Chief Judicial Magistrate or by the District Magistrate may be withdrawn by him.
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