Procedure when police officer deputes subordinate to arrest without warrant
Section 55 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 deals with procedure when police officer deputes subordinate to arrest without warrant. When any officer in charge of a police station or any police officer making an investigation under Chapter XIII requires any officer subordinate to him to arrest without a warrant (otherwise than in his presence) any person who may lawfully be arrested without a warrant, he shall deliver to the offi The Act came into force on 01 Jul 2024.
(1) When any officer in charge of a police station or any police officer making an investigation under Chapter XIII requires any officer subordinate to him to arrest without a warrant (otherwise than in his presence) any person who may lawfully be arrested without a warrant, he shall deliver to the officer required to make the arrest an order in writing, specifying the person to be arrested and the offence or other cause for which the arrest is to be made and the officer so required shall, before making the arrest, notify to the person to be arrested the substance of the order and, if so required by such person, shall show him the order.
(2) Nothing in sub-section (1) shall affect the power of a police officer to arrest a person under section 35
Section 55, The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (Act 46 of 2023).
Replaces a provision of the Code of Criminal Procedure
CRPC 55 Procedure when police officer deputes subordinate to arrest with outwarrant Text carried over almost unchanged 87%
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 The repealed enactment still governs what happened while it was in force.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.
This section refers to
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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Rashmikant B. Gabhawala vs State of Punjab
Decided under Code of Criminal Procedure 55, which this section replaces. The court did not have this Act before it.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
An information slip or intimation sheet issued by police under Clause 23.17 of Punjab Police Rules, 1934, which contains information relating to an FIR and is sent as a procedural requirement to ascertain antecedents of a person believed to have committed an offence, is not an arrest warrant and therefore cannot be the subject of a writ petition for certiorari seeking to quash an arrest warrant. A writ petition challenging such a procedural document is infructuous when the petitioner's grievance is premised on the false assumption that the document is an executable arrest warrant.
On this section: Referenced in Punjab Police Rules 1934 Clause 23.17 regarding arrest procedures; the information sheet is issued in connection with persons arrested under this section
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Pushpendra Chauhan vs State of U.p.
Decided under Code of Criminal Procedure 55, which this section replaces. The court did not have this Act before it.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
In cases involving ongoing investigation where chargesheet has not been filed, anticipatory bail may be granted till filing of police report under Section 173(2) CrPC, provided the court is satisfied after considering the nature and gravity of offences, the role attributed to the applicant, the likelihood of influencing investigation or tampering with evidence, and the likelihood of fleeing justice. The grant or refusal of anticipatory bail is a matter of judicial discretion to be exercised based on the specific facts and circumstances of each case.
On this section: Notice issued by Investigating Officer to the applicant
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 55
What have the courts held on Section 55 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita?
Rashmikant B. Gabhawala vs State of Punjab (30 Nov 2022) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below, though it was decided under CRPC 55, which this section replaced -- the court never mentioned this Act: Referenced in Punjab Police Rules 1934 Clause 23.17 regarding arrest procedures; the information sheet is issued in connection with persons arrested under this section. Another 1 judgment on this section is set out below. They run from 2022 to 2023.
How do I find court cases under Section 55 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 55, section 55 BNSS, section 55 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. 2 reported judgments on this section are set out on this page, beginning with Rashmikant B. Gabhawala vs State of Punjab (30 Nov 2022).
What should I read with Section 55 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and has it changed?
Its own text turns on section 35 (When police may arrest without warrant), so none of them can safely be read on its own. It carries forward CrPC 55 (Procedure when police officer deputes subordinate to arrest with outwarrant), so the judgments decided under that provision are the case law on this one.
When did Section 55 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita come into force?
Section 55 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, cited as BNSS 55, 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.