15. Protection of action taken under this Act.—No suit, prosecution or other legal proceeding shall
lie against the State Government or any officer or authority of the State Government for anything which is
in good faith done or intended to be done in pursuance of this Act or any rules or orders made under this
Act.
16. Burden of proof.—Where any person is prosecuted of an offence under section 4, the burden of
proving that he had not committed the offence under the said section shall be on him.
17. Obligation of certain persons to report about the commission of offence under this Act.—(1)
All officers of Government are hereby required and empowered to assist the police in the execution of the
provisions of this Act or any rule or order made thereunder.
(2) All village officers and such other officers as may be specified by the Collector or the District
Magistrate in relation to any area and the inhabitants of such area shall, if they have reason to believe or
have the knowledge that sati is about to be, or has been, committed in the area shall forthwith report such
fact to the nearest police station.
(3) Whoever contravenes the provisions of sub-section (1) or sub-section (2) shall be punishable with
imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to two years and shall also be liable to
fine.
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18. Person convicted of an offence under section 4 to be disqualified from inheriting certain
properties.—A person convicted of an offence under sub-section (1) of section 4 in relation to the
commission of sati shall be disqualified from inheriting the property of the person in respect of whom
such sati has been committed or the property of any other person which he would have been entitled to
inherit on the death of the person in respect of whom such sati has been committed.
19.[Amendment of Act 43 of 1951].—Rep. by the Repealing and Amending Act, 2001 (30 of 2001) s.2
and the First Schedule(w.e.f.3-9-2001).
20. Act to have overriding effect.—The provisions of this Act or any rule or order made thereunder
shall have effect notwithstanding anything inconsistent therewith contained in any enactment other than
this Act or in any instrument having effect by virtue of any enactment other than this Act.
21. Power to make rules.—(1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette,
make rules for carrying out the provisions of this Act.
(2) Every rule 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 rule or both Houses agree that the rule should not be made, the rule 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.
22. Repeal of existing laws.—(1) All laws in force in any State immediately before the
commencement of this Act in that State which provide for the prevention or the glorification of sati shall,
on such commencement, stand repealed.
(2) Notwithstanding such repeal, anything done or any action taken under any law repealed under
sub-section (1) shall be deemed to have been done or taken under the corresponding provisions of this
Act, and, in particular, any case taken cognizance of by a Special Court under the provisions of any law
so repealed and pending before it immediately before the commencement of this Act in that State shall
continue to be dealt with by that Special Court after such commencement as if such Special Court had
been constituted under section 9 of this Act.