Chapter VI
Section 79 CrPC: Warrant directed to police officer for execution outside jurisdiction
New Law Update (2024)
Section 82 BNSS
TRIAL COURT
Punishment
Procedural – Warrant / Summons Process
Cognizable?
Bailable?
Compoundable?
Bare Act Text
(1) When a warrant directed to a police officer is to be executed beyond the local jurisdiction of the Court issuing the same, he shall ordinarily take it for endorsement either to an Executive Magistrate or to a police officer not below the rank of an officer in charge of a police station, within the local limits of whose jurisdiction the warrant is to be executed.
(2) Such Magistrate or police officer shall endorse his name thereon and such endorsement shall be sufficient authority to the police officer to whom the warrant is directed to execute the same, and the local police shall, if so required, assist such officer in executing such warrant.
(3) Whenever there is reason to believe that the delay occasioned by obtaining the endorsement of the Magistrate or police officer within whose local jurisdiction the warrant is to be executed will prevent such execution, the police officer to whom it is directed may execute the same without such endorsement in any place beyond the local jurisdiction of the Court which issued it.
Important Sub-Sections Explained
Section 79(1)
This sub-section sets out the general rule for executing an arrest warrant outside the issuing court’s jurisdiction, requiring the police officer to first obtain an endorsement from a local Executive Magistrate or a senior police officer. This ensures local authority is apprised and gives legitimacy to the action.
Section 79(3)
This critical sub-section provides an exception to the general rule, allowing a police officer to execute a warrant outside jurisdiction without prior endorsement if there is a compelling reason to believe that obtaining such endorsement would cause a delay preventing the successful execution of the warrant. This caters to urgent situations.
Landmark Judgements
Subhash Kumar Singh v. The State of Bihar and Ors. (2009):
The Patna High Court reiterated that the procedure laid down in Section 79 CrPC for executing warrants outside the court’s jurisdiction is mandatory. It highlighted the importance of obtaining an endorsement from a local Executive Magistrate or a police officer not below the rank of an officer in charge of a police station, except in cases of urgent necessity where such endorsement would occasion delay preventing execution.
Smt. Mamta Sharma v. State of U.P. and Ors. (2014):
The Allahabad High Court emphasized the strict adherence to the procedural safeguards provided under Section 79 CrPC. The Court underscored that while Section 79(3) allows execution without endorsement in urgent situations, this exception must be exercised judiciously and only when there is a genuine apprehension that delay would defeat the purpose of the warrant.