161. Disposal of property of the members of the Force.—The Central Government or any other
authority empowered in this behalf by that Government may, by a general or special order, make
provisions for the disposal of the private or regimental property of any person subject to this Act or any
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other dues including provident fund of that person, who dies or deserts, or is ascertained to be of unsound
mind or while on active duty is officially reported as missing.
162. Powers and duties conferrable and imposable on members of the Force.—(1) The Central
Government may, by general or special order published in the Official Gazette, direct that, subject to such
conditions and limitations, and within the local limits of such area adjoining the border of India, as may
be specified in the order, any member of the Force may,—
(a) for the purpose of prevention of any offence punishable under the Passport (Entry into India)
Act, 1920 (34 of 1920), the Registration of Foreigners Act 1939 (16 of 1939), the Central Excise Act,
1944 (1 of 1944), the Foreigners Act, 1946 (31 of 1946), the Customs Act, 1962 (52 of 1962), the
Passports Act, 1967 (15 of 1967) or the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 (42 of 1999) or of
any cognizable offence punishable under any other Central Act; or
(b) for the purpose of apprehending any person who has committed any offence referred to in
clause (a),
exercise or discharge such of the powers or duties under that Act or any other Central Act as may be
specified in the said order, being the powers and duties which, in the opinion of the Central Government,
an officer of the corresponding or lower rank is by that or such other Act empowered to exercise or
discharge for the said purposes.
(2) The Central Government may, by general or special order published in the Official Gazette, confer
or impose, with the concurrence of the State Government concerned, any of the powers or duties which
may be exercised or discharged under a State Act by a police officer upon a members of the Force who, in
the opinion of the Central Government, holds a corresponding or higher rank.
(3) Every order made under this section shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made, before each
House of Parliament while it is in session for a total period of thirty days which may be comprised in one
session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before the expiry of the session immediately
following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification
in the order or both Houses agree that the order should not be made, the order shall thereafter have effect
only in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification
or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that order.
163. Protection for acts of members of the Force.—(1) The provision of section 125 of the Indian
Evidence Act, 1872 (1 of 1872) shall apply to such members of the Force who exercise or discharge any
power or duty under sub-section (1) of section 162 or on whom any power is conferred or duty is imposed
under sub-section (2) of that section in the same manner as it apply to a police officer.
(2) In any suit or proceeding against any member of the Force for any act done by him in pursuance
of a warrant or order of a competent authority, it shall be lawful for him to plead, that such act was done
by him under the authority of such warrant or order.
(3) Any such plea may be proved by the production of the warrant or order directing the act, and if it
is so proved the members of the Force shall thereupon be discharged from liability in respect of the act so
done by him, notwithstanding any defect in jurisdiction of the authority which issued such warrant or
order.
(4) Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force, any legal
proceeding (whether civil or criminal) which may lawfully be brought against any member of the Force
for anything done or intended to be done under the powers conferred by, or in pursuance of, any provision
of this Act or the rules, shall be commenced within three months after the act complained of was
committed and not otherwise, and notice in writing of such proceedings and of the cause thereof shall be
given to the defendant or his superior officer at least one month before the commencement of such
proceedings.
164. Power of Central Government to remove difficulties.—(1) If any difficulty arises in giving
effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central Government may, by order published in the Official
39
Gazette, make such provisions not inconsistent with the provisions of this Act as may appear to be
necessary for removing the difficulty:
Provided that no order shall be made under this section after the expiry of two years from the
commencement of this Act.
(2) Every order made under this section shall, as soon as may be after it is made, be laid before each
House of Parliament.
165. Power to make rules.—(1) The Central Government may, by notification, make rules for the
purposes of carrying out the provisions of this Act.
(2) In particular and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rules may
provide for—
(a) the manner of re-constitution of the Force and the conditions of service of the members of the
Force under sub-section (2) of section 4;
(b) the mode of enrolment and the procedure for enrolment under sub-section (1) of section 6;
(c) the authority whose previous permission in writing is required for resigning from appointment
or withdrawing from all or any of the duties under section 8;
(d) rank or ranks of an officer or a subordinate officer referred to under sub-section (2) of section
11;
(e) the authority who shall give previous sanction in writing under sub-section (1) of section 13;
(f) nature of communication or publication under clause (c) of sub-section (1) of section 13;
(g) other purposes of meeting or demonstration under sub-section (2) of section 13;
(h) form of enrolment under section 31;
(i) any other purpose under clause (h) of sub-section (1) of section 57;
(j) the officer who may direct that an enrolled person who has been sentenced to dismissal or
imprisonment whether combined with dismissal or not may be retained to serve in the ranks under
section 60;
(k) the manner of proceedings against a person and the extent of awarding punishment under
section 62;
(l) the manner of proceeding against an officer below the rank of a Deputy Commandant and of
the rank of subordinate officer and of the rank of Warrant Officer under sub-section (1) of section 64;
(m) the manner of forwarding certified true copies of the proceedings and the superior authority
to whom such copies shall be forwarded under sub-section (2) of section 64;
(n) the manner of proceeding against an officer below the rank of Commandant and of any rank
of subordinate officer and of the rank of Warrant Officer under sub-section (1) of section 65;
(o) the manner of proceeding against any subordinate officer or a Warrant Officer under section
66;
(p) the officer by whose order any sum is required to be paid, for the maintenance of wife or
legitimate or illegitimate child of a person subject to this Act other than an officer, under clause (i) of
section 69;
(q) the officer who may direct that the whole or any part of the pay and allowances of person
subject to this Act shall be withheld under section 71;
(r) the manner and the extent of remission of deductions from pay and allowances authorised by
this Act and the authority by which such remission shall be made under section 75;
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(s) the authorities by whom proper provision to be made out of the pay and allowances of all
persons subject to this Act, being prisoners of war, for the dependents of such persons under section
76;
(t) the authorities who shall make proper provision out of the pay and allowances of any person
subject to this Act, who is prisoner of war or is missing under section 77;
(u) the manner in which and the period for which any person subject to this Act may be taken into
and detained in force custody under sub-section (4) of section 80;
(v) the manner of making special report giving reasons for delay under section 81;
(w) the authority to appoint, and the manner of appointment of, a court of inquiry; the manner of
administering oath or affirmation by such court of inquiry and the manner of making record under
sub-section (1) of section 84;
(x) the officer who may appoint Force police under sub-section (1) of section 85;
(y) the other officer having the discretion to decide before which court the proceeding shall be
instituted under section 102;
(z) the manner of filling up the vacancy of member by another officer under sub-section (3) of
section 106;
(za) the manner of administering oath or affirmation to every member of an Assam Rifles Court
and to the Law Officer, or, as the case may be, the officer approved under section 105 before the
commencement of the trial, under sub-section (1) of section 107;
(zb) the form for being duly sworn or affirmed under sub-section (2) of section 107;
(zc) the officer by whom the letter, return or other documents purported to be signed shall be the
evidence of the facts stated in such letter, return or other document under sub-section (1) of section
118;
(zd) the other matters to be further inquired and recoded under sub-section (1) of section 120;
(ze) the other matters to be recorded under sub-section (3) of section 120;
(zf) the manner of keeping in custody of the accused person under sub-section (4) of section 121;
(zg) the officer who may take steps to have certain persons tried under section 122;
(zh) the authority for issuing certificate in case of detention in any other place under clause (b) of
section 122;
(zi) the officer to whom the proceedings of every summary Assam Rifles Courts shall be
forwarded under section 137;
(zj) the officer superior in command, to the one who confirmed the findings or sentence referred
to in sub-section (2) of section 139, to whom petition may be presented under that sub-section;
(zk) the officer who may annul the proceeding of any Assam Rifles Court under section 140;
(zl) the other officer who shall direct that sentence shall be carried out by the confinement in a
civil prison under sub-section (1) of section 143;
(zm) the officer who shall forward a warrant and the form of such warrant under sub-section (2)
of section 143;
(zn) the officer who may from time to time appoint the place of confinement under sub-section
(4) of section 143;
(zo) the other person by whom the warrant shall be forwarded to the officer in charge of the
prison under section 147;
(zp) the officer who may pardon or exercise other powers as specified under clauses (a) to (c) of
section 150;
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(zq) any other matter which is to be, may be, prescribed, or in respect of which provision is to be,
or may be, made by rules.
166. Power to make regulations.—The Director-General may make regulations for all or any of the
purposes of this Act other than those specified in section 165, subject to approval of the Central
Government.
167. Rules and regulations to be laid before Parliament.—Every rule or regulation made under
this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made, before each House of Parliament, while it is in
session for a total period of thirty days which may be comprised in one session or in two or more
successive sessions, and if, before the expiry of the session immediately following the session, or the
successive sessions aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or regulation or
both Houses agree that the rule or regulation should not be made, the rule or regulation shall thereafter
have effect only in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be, so, however, that any such
modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under
that rule or regulation.
168. Repeal and savings.—(1) The Assam Rifles Act, 1941 (5 of 1941) is hereby repealed.
(2) Notwithstanding such repeal,—
(a) the Assam Rifles in existence at the commencement of this Act and constituted under the Act
so repealed shall be deemed to be reconstituted under this Act;
(b) members of the Assam Rifles in existence at the commencement of this Act and appointed
under the Act so repealed shall be deemed to have been appointed or, as the case may be, enrolled as
such under this Act;
(c) any appeal, application, trial, inquiry or investigation pending immediately before the
commencement of this Act shall be disposed of, continued, held or made, as the case may be, in
accordance with the provisions of the Assam Rifles Act, 1941 (5 of 1941), as if this Act had not come
into force;
(d) any thing done or any action taken before the commencement of this Act, in relation to any
person appointed or enrolled, shall be valid and as effective in law as if such thing or action was done
or taken under the corresponding provisions of this Act.