Section91
The Air Force Act, 1950

Deductions from pay and allowances of officers

In force From 22 Jul 1950 Act 45 of 1950 As on 19 Oct 2026

Act 45 of 1950 Ministry Defence Enacted 18 May 1950 In force 22 Jul 1950 Cited by 2 provisions

Section 91 of the Air Force Act, 1950 deals with deductions from pay and allowances of officers. The following penal deductions may be made from the pay and allowances of an officer, that is to say,-- (a) all pay and allowances due to an officer for every day he absents himself without leave, unless a satisfactory explanation has been given to his commanding officer and has been approved by the The Act came into force on 22 Jul 1950.

The following penal deductions may be made from the pay and allowances of an officer, that is to say,--

(a) all pay and allowances due to an officer for every day he absents himself without leave, unless a satisfactory explanation has been given to his commanding officer and has been approved by the Central Government;

(b) all pay and allowances for everyday while he is in custody or under suspension from duty on a charge for an offence of which he is afterwards convicted by a criminal court or a court-martial or by an officer exercising authority under section 86;

(c) any sum required to make good the pay of any person subject to this Act which he has unlawfully retained or unlawfully refused to pay;

(d) any sum required to make good such compensation for any expenses, loss, damage or destruction occasioned by the commission of an offence as may be determined by the court-martial by whom he is convicted of such offence, or by an officer exercising authority under section 86;

(e) all pay and allowances ordered by a court-martial or an officer exercising authority under section 86 to be forfeited or stopped;

(f) any sum required to pay a fine awarded by a criminal court or a court-martial exercising jurisdiction under section 71;

(g) any sum required to make good any loss, damage or destruction of public or service property which, after due investigation, appears to the Central Government to have been occasioned by the wrongful act or negligence on the part of the officer;

(h) all pay and allowances forfeited by order of the Central Government if the officer is found by a court of inquiry constituted by 1[the Chief of the Air Staff] in this behalf, to have deserted to the enemy, or while in enemy hands, to have served with, or under the orders of, the enemy or in any manner to have aided the enemy, or to have allowed himself to be taken prisoner by the enemy through want of due precaution or through disobedience of orders or wilful neglect of duty, or having been taken prisoner by the enemy to have failed to rejoin his service when it was possible to do so;

(i) any sum required by order of the Central Government to be paid for the maintenance of his wife or his legitimate or illegitimate child or towards the costs of any relief given by the said Government to the said wife or child.

Section 91, The Air Force Act, 1950 (Act 45 of 1950).

Cross-references

Extracted from the operative text of the enactments themselves. Every destination below exists in our corpus.

Related judgements & precedents

These are some judgments that construed this section, and hold precedence value. They hold authority on how to read, interpret and use this section.

  1. Rashmi Roshan @ Nigar v. Union of India & Ors.

    High Court 09 Apr 2025 Persuasive (Orissa High Court Single Bench) WP(C) 19271/2016; Orissa HC SB Final Order 09.04.2025; Murahari Sri Raman J

    Court's Decision & Legal Precedent

    DATE-VERIFIED Final Order 2025-04-09 (order-11.pdf; index date matches body 09.04.2025): court-awarded maintenance/house-rent does not fall within s.91(i), which covers only sums required by Order of the Central Government (or prescribed officer) for maintenance of a wife; Air Force authorities are not under a mandamus duty to deduct judicial maintenance under s.91 where marriage/status is disputed and no Central Government order exists.

    On this section: s.91(i) maintenance deduction is confined to Central Government/prescribed-officer orders — not free-standing enforcement of civil-court maintenance against Air Force pay.

    Read the full order on eCourts India

The holding above is the ratio decidendi as extracted from the judgment by eCourts India, reproduced unaltered — it is a rendering of the court's reasoning, not a substitute for its words. Read the order itself before relying on it.

Judgments citing this section

These may be obiter dicta or a precedent, for you to study. These are the judgments where this section is quoted.

  1. High Court 09 Apr 2025 ODHC010051682016

    … This Court finds force in such submission of the learned counsel for the opposite party No.4 that recovery of such amount of maintenance and house rent awarded in favour of the petitioner does not fall within the scope and ambit of Section 91(i) of the Air Force Act inasmuch as any sum required by Order of the Central Government to be paid for the maintenance of wife or towards the costs of any relief given by the said Government to the said wife would be comprehended in said provision. The learned counsel for the petitioner having not been able show any …

    Read this order on eCourtsIndia

Questions about Section 91

What have the courts held on Section 91 of the Air Force Act?

Rashmi Roshan @ Nigar v. Union of India & Ors. (09 Apr 2025) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: s.91(i) maintenance deduction is confined to Central Government/prescribed-officer orders — not free-standing enforcement of civil-court maintenance against Air Force pay.

How do I find court cases under Section 91 of the Air Force Act?

In judgments and charge sheets this section is written several ways, and each form finds a different set of orders. These search the full text of every order eCourtsIndia holds, best matches first: Air Force Act 1950 91, section 91 Air Force Act 1950, section 91 of the Air Force Act. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 1 reported judgment on this section is set out on this page, beginning with Rashmi Roshan @ Nigar v. Union of India & Ors. (09 Apr 2025).

What should I read with Section 91 of the Air Force Act, and has it changed?

Its own text turns on section 71 (Civil offences), section 86 (Punishment of officers and warrant officers), so none of them can safely be read on its own. 2 other provisions in this corpus refer back to it.

When did Section 91 of the Air Force Act come into force?

Section 91 of the Air Force Act, cited as Air Force Act 1950 91, came into force on 22 Jul 1950, having been enacted on 18 May 1950. It is in force as at the date shown on this page.

Other sections of this Act

Source and method. Compiled from the enactments of Parliament and of the State legislatures as published on India Code, and republished together with commentary and other original matter under section 52(1)(q)(ii) of the Copyright Act, 1957. Structured, cross-referenced and maintained by eCourtsIndia. Text as in force on 19 Oct 2026. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.