Report No. 248
23. Foreign Recruiting Act, Act 4 of 1874
Category: International Relations
Recommendation: Consider for repeal
This Act empowered the Government to issue an order that prevented the recruitment of Indians by a foreign State. The Act confers a wide discretion on the Government to specify the conditions under which persons may be barred from being recruited by a foreign State.
According to the Law Commission, in its 43rd Report on Offences against National Security (1971), such wide discretion might potentially violate the constitutional guarantee to freedom of occupation under Article 19. The 2nd Administrative Reforms Commission Report of 2006 has also observed that this Act is outdated. This Act has been recommended for repeal by the PC Jain Commission in its Appendix A-1.