Arms Act – Illegal Use Of Licensed Weapon Per Se Not Offence Under Section 27 Unless Misdemeanour Under Sections 5/7 Proved
Case: Surinder Singh v State (Union Territory Of Chandigarh)
Coram: CJI NV Ramana, Justices Surya Kant and AS Bopanna
Case No.: Criminal Appeal No. 2373 Of 2010
Court Observation: “The Appellant was admittedly a police official at the time of the incident and the arms and ammunition used for the commission of the offence, were placed in his possession under the sanction accorded by the Competent Authority. The Appellant being in authorised possession of the weapon, cannot be said to have used an unlicensed weapon, as prohibited under Section 5 of the Arms Act. It appears that the Trial Court was swayed by irrelevant considerations such as illegal use of the weapon, and lost track of the objective of the Statute, which has been enacted to provide a licensing/regulatory regime, to enable law abiding citizens to carry arms, and also to prohibit the possession, acquisition, manufacture, etc. of certain categories of firearms, unless authorized by the Central Government.”
“…the llegal use of a licensed or sanctioned weapon per se does not constitute an offence under Section 27, without proving the misdemeanour under Section 5 or 7 of the Arms Act. At best, it could be a ‘misconduct’ under the service rules, the determination of which was not the subject of the trial”
“True it is that prior to the amendment of Section 27 of the Arms Act, vide Arms (Amendment) Act 1988, the said provision penalized the use of any arms and ammunitions for any ‘unlawful purpose’. However, post its amendment, Section 27 of the Arms Act is strictly confined to violation of conditions mentioned either under Section 5 or 7 of the Arms Act and the ‘unlawful purpose’ of using arms and ammunition is no longer an inseparable component of the delinquency.”
[doc id=12300]
Previous Posts
Resolution Process Has To Be Completed Within The Period Stipulated U/Sec 12 IBC: Supreme Court
Pension Shall Be Determined On Rules Existing At The Time Of Retirement: Supreme Court
Rape Conviction Can Be Based On Sole Testimony Of Victim If Credible & Trustworthy, Reiterates Supreme Court Download Judgement
