Search by police officer
Section 185 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 deals with search by police officer. Whenever an officer in charge of a police station or a police officer making an investigation has reasonable grounds for believing that anything necessary for the purposes of an investigation into any offence which he is authorised to investigate may be found in any place within the limits of the po The Act came into force on 01 Jul 2024.
(1) Whenever an officer in charge of a police station or a police officer making an investigation has reasonable grounds for believing that anything necessary for the purposes of an investigation into any offence which he is authorised to investigate may be found in any place within the limits of the police station of which he is in charge, or to which he is attached, and that such thing cannot in his opinion be otherwise obtained without undue delay, such officer may, after recording in writing the grounds of his belief in the case-diary and specifying in such writing, so far as possible, the thing for which search is to be made, search, or cause search to be made, for such thing in any place within the limits of such station.
(2) A police officer proceeding under sub-section (1), shall, if practicable, conduct the search in person:
Provided that the search conducted under this section shall be recorded through audio-video electronic means preferably by mobile phone.
(3) If he is unable to conduct the search in person, and there is no other person competent to make the search present at the time, he may, after recording in writing his reasons for so doing, require any officer subordinate to him to make the search, and he shall deliver to such subordinate officer an order in writing, specifying the place to be searched, and so far as possible, the thing for which search is to be made; and such subordinate officer may thereupon search for such thing in such place.
(4) The provisions of this Sanhita as to search-warrants and the general provisions as to searches contained in section 103 shall, so far as may be, apply to a search made under this section.
(5) Copies of any record made under sub-section (1) or sub-section (3) shall forthwith, but not later than forty-eight hours, be sent to the nearest Magistrate empowered to take cognizance of the offence, and the owner or occupier of the place searched shall, on application, be furnished, free of cost, with a copy of the same by the Magistrate.
Section 185, The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (Act 46 of 2023).
Replaces a provision of the Code of Criminal Procedure
CRPC 165 Search by police officer Text carried over almost unchanged 95%
Measured by comparing the text of the two provisions, not taken from an official correspondence table — there is no machine-readable one. See both texts side by side before relying on it.
Both regimes are live. The repealed enactment still governs what happened while it was in force. We never redirect one to the other.
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.
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Sarju @ Ramu vs State of U. P
Decided under Code of Criminal Procedure 165, which this section replaces. The court did not have this Act before it.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
In cases under the NDPS Act, particularly where serious allegations are made against police officials, the procedural safeguards contained in the Act, especially Section 50 requiring that a person to be searched must be informed of their right to be searched by a Gazetted Officer or Magistrate, must be scrupulously complied with. Failure to inform the person of this right renders the recovery of contraband suspect and vitiates the conviction where the conviction is based solely on possession of the illicit article recovered during the illegal search. Evidence obtained through violation of Section 50 safeguards cannot be used as evidence of unlawful possession to sustain a conviction. The investigating agency must follow the procedure envisaged by the statute scrupulously, and failure to do so must be viewed seriously by higher authorities. An accused is entitled to a fair trial, and a conviction resulting from an unfair trial is contrary to the concept of justice.
On this section: Provisions regarding search procedures applicable to NDPS Act cases
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Jagdish Chandra vs C.b.i.
Decided under Code of Criminal Procedure 165, which this section replaces. The court did not have this Act before it.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Hard discs on which intercepted telephone conversations have been recorded are electronic records and therefore documents within the meaning of Section 173(5)(a) read with Section 207(v) CrPC. The prosecution is obliged to furnish to the accused copies of only such documents that it proposes to rely upon as indicated in the charge sheet or of those already sent to the court during investigation. At the pre-charge stage, the trial court cannot direct the prosecution to furnish copies of documents other than those which it proposes to rely upon. However, where the charge sheet indicates that the prosecution is relying upon certain documents, the accused must be given access to those documents. In the instant case, the scope of the APFSL examination was to certify that the hard discs were properly functioning and that the calls copied on to the CDs were true copies of the original recordings in the hard discs. Only to this extent can it be said that the hard discs are being relied upon by the prosecution. The certification in terms of Section 65B(4) EA does not obviate the statutory requirement under Section 207(v) of providing to the accused access to the original recording of the relevant intercepted telephone conversation as a relied upon document. Therefore, the accused should be permitted to listen to the original recordings of the relevant intercepted telephonic conversations relied upon by the prosecution by having the said original recordings played directly from the hard discs in the presence of the accused or their representatives, their counsel and the learned Judge.
On this section: Prosecution duty to submit documents to Magistrate
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Santosh Mishra vs State Govt. of N.c.t. of Delhi
Decided under Code of Criminal Procedure 165, which this section replaces. The court did not have this Act before it.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
In bail applications under Section 439 CrPC involving serious drug trafficking charges with substantial recovery of narcotic drugs, procedural defects in search and notice procedures cannot be appreciated at the bail stage but must be examined during trial after recording of prosecution evidence. The court should not prejudge procedural compliance issues at bail stage. The gravity of charges and quantum of recovery are material considerations in bail decisions, and procedural irregularities do not automatically entitle an accused to bail without showing prejudice. The trial court should be directed to expedite proceedings to ensure compliance with constitutional guarantee of expeditious trial.
On this section: Requirement for independent witnesses during search; petitioner argued this was mandatory requirement
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.
Questions about Section 185
What have the courts held on Section 185 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita?
Sarju @ Ramu vs State of U. P (07 Aug 2009) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below, though it was decided under CRPC 165, which this section replaced -- the court never mentioned this Act: Provisions regarding search procedures applicable to NDPS Act cases. Another 2 judgments on this section are set out below, 1 of them from the Supreme Court. They run from 2003 to 2009.
How do I find court cases under Section 185 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita?
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: BNSS 185, section 185 BNSS, section 185 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 3 reported judgments on this section are set out on this page, beginning with Sarju @ Ramu vs State of U. P (07 Aug 2009).
What should I read with Section 185 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and has it changed?
Its own text turns on section 103 (Persons in charge of closed place to allow search), so none of them can safely be read on its own. 2 other provisions in this corpus refer back to it. It carries forward CrPC 165 (Search by police officer), so the judgments decided under that provision are the case law on this one.
When did Section 185 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita come into force?
Section 185 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, cited as BNSS 185, came into force on 01 Jul 2024, having been enacted on 25 Dec 2023. It is in force as at the date shown on this page.
Other sections of this Act
- 359. Compounding of offences1355 words
- 187. Procedure when investigation cannot be completed in twenty-four hours1122 words
- 2. Definitions956 words
- 243. Trial for more than one offence930 words
- 35. When police may arrest without warrant881 words
- 480. When bail may be taken in case of non-bailable offence823 words
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 15 Oct 2026. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.