When search warrant may be issued
Section 93 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 deals with when search warrant may be issued. (a) Where any Court has reason to believe that a person to whom a summons or order under section 91 or a requisition under sub-section (1) of section 92 has been, or might be, addressed, will not or would not produce the document or thing as required by such summons or requisition, or (b) where such The Act came into force on 01 Apr 1974. Repealed by section 531 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (46 of 2023) with effect from 1 July 2024, but conduct before that date is still charged, tried and appealed under it.
(1) (a) Where any Court has reason to believe that a person to whom a summons or order under section 91 or a requisition under sub-section (1) of section 92 has been, or might be, addressed, will not or would not produce the document or thing as required by such summons or requisition, or
(b) where such document or thing is not known to the Court to be the possession of any person, or
(c) where the Court considers that the purposes of any inquiry, trial or other proceeding under this Code will be served by a general search or inspection,
it may issue a search-warrant; and the person to whom such warrant is directed, may search or inspect in accordance therewith and the provisions hereinafter contained.
(2) The Court may, if it thinks fit, specify in the warrant the particular place or part thereof to which only the search or inspection shall extend; and the person charged with the execution of such warrant shall then search or inspect only the place or part so specified.
(3) Nothing contained in this section shall authorise any Magistrate other than a District Magistrate or Chief Judicial Magistrate to grant a warrant to search for a document, parcel or other thing in the custody of the postal or telegraph authority.
Section 93, The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (Act 2 of 1974).
Now in the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita
BNSS 96 When search-warrant may be issued Text carried over almost unchanged 99%
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 The repealed enactment still governs what happened while it was in force.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
Referred to by 1
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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The Muthoot Finance LTD vs The State of Ap
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Police investigating officers must follow the prescribed procedure under Sections 91 and 93 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, when seeking to recover property in possession of a third party. Police cannot arbitrarily enter business premises, threaten employees, or interfere with business operations without following due process of law. If a person refuses to produce property in response to a written order under Section 91 CrPC, the investigating officer must obtain a search warrant from the court under Section 93 CrPC before conducting a search.
On this section: Provides authority to court to issue search warrant when there is reason to believe that a person will not produce the document or thing as required by police officer under Section 91. Court clarified this is the proper procedure to follow if petitioner refuses to produce property.
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Bevara Srinivasa Rao vs The State of Ap.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
When a special statute (Passports Act) exists to regulate a specific subject matter (passports), courts cannot exercise general powers under the Code of Criminal Procedure (Section 104 CrPC) to impound that subject matter. The doctrine of generalia specialibus non derogant requires that specific statutory provisions override general procedural provisions. Therefore, courts lack authority to direct surrender of passports or impound passports as a bail condition, even when the investigating officer petitions for such direction under Section 93 CrPC.
On this section: Basis for investigating officer's petition to direct passport surrender; court found this section does not authorize passport impounding
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Central Bureau of Investigation vs Govt of Nct of Delhi
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
The requirement of documents for the purpose of investigation is to be examined and decided by the Investigating Officer, and any direction to interfere in the same is not justified. The Investigating Officer has the unfettered discretion to retain documents during the pendency of investigation, and the court cannot examine the relevancy of seized documents at the initial stage of investigation or direct their return based on claims of government functioning disruption. The scope of investigation cannot be curtailed by the scope of search warrant application, and item 10 of the search warrant annexure allowing seizure of 'any other documents relevant to the case' permits the Investigating Officer to seize documents beyond those specifically listed.
On this section: Issuance of search warrants and scope of search; Section 93(1)(c) interpreted to allow general search when purposes of inquiry will be served
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Md. Ibrahim Hussain vs The State of Andhra Pradesh
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
When a police investigation has been completed, witnesses have been examined, and a final report has been filed citing lack of evidence, a writ of mandamus cannot be issued to compel further investigation. The appropriate remedy for a complainant dissatisfied with the investigation and final report is to file a protest application before the concerned court, not to seek judicial intervention through a writ petition.
On this section: Power to examine witnesses and seize documents - cited by petitioner as basis for mandamus petition
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 93
What have the courts held on Section 93 of the Code of Criminal Procedure?
The Muthoot Finance LTD vs The State of Ap (27 Apr 2023) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: Provides authority to court to issue search warrant when there is reason to believe that a person will not produce the document or thing as required by police officer under Section 91. Court clarified this is the proper procedure to follow if petitioner refuses to produce property. Another 3 judgments on this section are set out below. They run from 2013 to 2023.
How do I find court cases under Section 93 of the Code of Criminal Procedure?
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: CRPC 93, section 93 CRPC, section 93 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. People searching for it also type crpc 93 in bnss and 93 crpc notice. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 4 reported judgments on this section are set out on this page, beginning with The Muthoot Finance LTD vs The State of Ap (27 Apr 2023).
What should I read with Section 93 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, and has it changed?
Its own text turns on section 91 (Summons to produce document or other thing), section 92 (Procedure as to letters and telegrams), so none of them can safely be read on its own. 1 other provision in this corpus refers back to it. For anything done on or after 1 July 2024 the provision to read is BNSS 96 (When search-warrant may be issued), which replaced it; conduct before that date is still charged, tried and appealed under this section.
When did Section 93 of the Code of Criminal Procedure come into force?
Section 93 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, commonly called search warrant, and cited as CRPC 93, came into force on 01 Apr 1974, having been enacted on 25 Jan 1974. It is no longer in force.
Other sections of this Act
- 320. Compounding of offences1554 words
- 167. Procedure when investigation cannot be completed in twenty four hours1005 words
- 220. Trial for more than one offence962 words
- 360. Order to release on probation of good conduct or after admonition804 words
- 2. Definitions799 words
- 198. Prosecution for offences against marriage774 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. Recovered from the consolidated text published by India Code (item 330a1099-77ad-4a2e-b22a-769b33398f9e). This page is not a substitute for legal advice.