The Duties of the State, and the Section 10 Removal Power

In one line

Sections 9 to 13 give the State Government power to confer powers of investigation, permit a Special Court to remove a person likely to commit an offence from an area, and impose on the State a duty to take measures for the prevention of atrocities.

Section 9: conferment of powers

Notwithstanding anything in the Code of Criminal Procedure or in any other provision of the Act, the State Government may, if it considers it necessary or expedient, for the prevention of and for coping with any offence under the Act, or for any case or class or group of cases under it, confer on any officer of the State Government the powers exercisable by a police officer under the Code in such district or part as may be specified, and any officer so conferred shall exercise those powers subject to such conditions and limitations as may be specified.

Two observations.

It permits an officer who is not a police officer to exercise police powers, which matters because the ordinary complaint in this field is against the police.

And the conferral may be for a class or group of cases, so a State may designate officers for atrocity cases specifically rather than generally.

Sections 10 to 13: the removal power

Section 10(1): where the Special Court is satisfied, upon a complaint or a police report, that a person is likely to commit an offence under Chapter II in any area included in the Scheduled Areas or tribal areas as referred to in article 244, or in any area identified as atrocity-prone, it may by order in writing direct that person to remove himself from that area and not to return for such period, not exceeding two years, as may be specified.

Section 10(2) and (3) require the Special Court to inform the person of the grounds and give an opportunity of tendering an explanation, and permit the order to be varied or revoked.

Section 11 provides for the procedure where a person fails to remove himself or returns within the period: the Special Court may cause them to be arrested and removed under police escort.

Section 12 permits the Special Court to require the person against whom an order has been made to allow his measurements and photographs to be taken, and where the order is revoked the measurements and photographs are destroyed.

Section 13 provides the penalty for non-compliance with an order under section 10: imprisonment which may extend to one year and fine.

Three observations about the removal power.

It is preventive rather than punitive. It operates on a likelihood of an offence, not on a conviction, which makes it an unusual power in an Indian criminal statute.