THE POLICE ACT, 1861 • SECTION 5

Section 5 of the Police Act, 1861: Powers of the Inspector-General of Police

Section 5 addresses the statutory magisterial powers of the Inspector-General of Police and expressly makes their exercise subject to limitations imposed by the State Government. Its operation must be considered alongside subsequent criminal procedure legislation and the applicable State police law.

Section 5: Statutory text

5. Powers of Inspector-General - Exercise of powers.
The Inspector-General of Police shall have the full powers of a Magistrate throughout the general police-district; but shall exercise those powers subject to such limitation as may from time to time be imposed by the State Government.

This reproduces the central provision in readable form. State amendments, substitutions and repeals can alter its operation in a particular jurisdiction.

Meaning of Section 5

Inspector-General of Police

The Inspector-General is an officer contemplated by Section 4 of the Act for police administration. Section 5 historically attaches magisterial powers to that office, subject to statutory qualifications.

General police-district

The expression is defined in Section 1 and describes the territorial area to which the Act has been brought into effect. The geographical reach of Section 5 depends on the law applicable to the area concerned.

Magisterial powers

The reference to the powers of a Magistrate is part of the historical statutory wording. It should not be read as automatically conferring every power exercised by a present-day Judicial Magistrate or Executive Magistrate. Current allocations of criminal and executive-magisterial jurisdiction, valid appointments and notifications, and applicable procedural laws must be examined.

State Government limitations and current legal position

The final words of Section 5 are important: the Inspector-General must exercise the powers mentioned in the provision subject to limitations imposed by the State Government from time to time. The provision therefore does not confer unrestricted authority.

The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, which came into force on 1 July 2024, governs criminal procedure in place of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, subject to its saving and transitional provisions. Questions about the exercise of a particular magisterial power must be assessed under the applicable contemporary law, rather than Section 5 in isolation.

Police organisation is also regulated by State legislation. For example, State amendments and special police enactments may substitute designations, modify or omit the provision, or establish different command and supervisory arrangements. Verify the law, notifications and rules in force in the relevant State or Union Territory before relying on Section 5.

Legislative and amendment note

The original page records that the expression State Government was substituted by the Adaptation of Laws Order, 1950, for Provincial Government, which had earlier replaced L.G. under the Adaptation of Laws Order, 1937. This historical note remains relevant to understanding the evolution of the provision.

State-specific changes are not uniform. For example, historical State amendment compilations record deletion of Section 5 in its application to Maharashtra and substitution of the officer designation in Uttar Pradesh. Their current effect must be checked against the relevant State's consolidated law and later amendments.

Section 3 concerns State Government superintendence; Section 4 concerns the Inspector-General and police administration; Section 7 concerns disciplinary powers over subordinate ranks; and Section 12 concerns rule-making by the Inspector-General subject to State Government approval.

Official legal sources

Read the Police Act, 1861 on India Code and the official text of the Police Act, 1861 (PDF). For modern criminal procedure, consult the India Code portal for the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, and check State legislation and notifications as appropriate.

Legal information only. Statutory wording, local amendments, commencement notifications and judicial interpretations should be checked for the particular jurisdiction and date.