Power to issue warrant and authorisation
Section 41 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 deals with power to issue warrant and authorisation. (l) A Metropolitan Magistrate or a Magistrate of the first class or any Magistrate of the second class specially empowered by the State Government in this behalf, may issue a warrant for the arrest of any person whom he has reason to believe to have committed any offence punishable under this Act, o The Act came into force on 14 Nov 1985.
1[41. Power to issue warrant and authorisation.-- (l) A Metropolitan Magistrate or a Magistrate of the first class or any Magistrate of the second class specially empowered by the State Government in this behalf, may issue a warrant for the arrest of any person whom he has reason to believe to have committed any offence punishable under this Act, or for the search, whether by day or by night, of any building, conveyance or place in which he has reason to believe any narcotic drug or psychotropic substance or controlled substance in respect of which an offence punishable under this Act has been committed or any document or other article which may furnish evidence of the commission of such offence or any illegally acquired property or any document or other article which may furnish evidence of holding any illegally acquired property which is liable for seizure or freezing or forfeiture under Chapter VA of this Act is kept or concealed:
(2) Any such officer of gazetted rank of the departments of central excise, narcotics, customs, revenue intelligence or any other department of the Central Government including the para-military forces or the armed forces as is empowered in this behalf by general or special order by the Central Government, or any such officer of the revenue, drugs control, excise, police or any other department of a State Government as is empowered in this behalf by general or special order of the State Government if he has reason to believe from personal knowledge or information given by any person and taken in writing that any person has committed an offence punishable under this Act or that any narcotic drug or psychotropic substance or controlled substance in respect of which any offence under this Act has been committed or any document or other article which may furnish evidence of the commission of such offence or any illegally acquired property or any document or other article which may furnish evidence of holding any illegally acquired property which is liable for seizure or freezing or forfeiture under Chapter VA of this Act is kept or concealed in any building, conveyance or place, may authorise any officer subordinate to him but superior in rank to a peon, sepoy or a constable to arrest such a person or search a building, conveyance or place whether by day or by night or himself arrest such a person or search a building, conveyance or place.
(3) The officer to whom a warrant under sub-section (1) is addressed and the officer who authorised the arrest or search or the officer who is so authorised under sub-section (2) shall have all the powers of an officer acting under section 42.]
Section 41, The Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (Act 61 of 1985).
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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M. Uma Maheswar vs State of Andhra Pradesh
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Section 42(2) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985, which mandates that officers record received information in writing and transmit a copy to their immediate official superior within seventy-two hours, applies only to non-gazetted officers acting without prior warrant or authorization under Sections 41(1) or 41(2). This requirement does not apply to gazetted rank officers acting under Section 41(2) authority, as such officers are the source of authorization power for subordinates and cannot be equated with officers acting without authorization. The rationale for Section 42(2) - to inform superiors of unauthorized actions by subordinates - does not apply to gazetted officers who possess inherent authority to conduct searches and seizures on their own.
On this section: Section 41 empowers Magistrates and gazetted officers to issue warrants and authorizations for search, seizure and arrest. Section 41(1) refers to Magistrate powers; Section 41(2) refers to gazetted officer authorization powers. The court distinguished this from Section 42 - noting that gazetted officers acting under their own authority under Section 41(2) do not need to comply with Section 42(2) reporting requirements.
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Tofan Singh vs The State of Tamil Nadu through the Ineliigence Officer
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Officers designated under Section 53 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 are 'police officers' within the meaning of Section 25 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872. Consequently, any confessional statement made to such officers is barred from being used as evidence under Section 25 of the Evidence Act. Additionally, a statement recorded under Section 67 of the NDPS Act cannot be used as a confessional statement in the trial of an offence under the NDPS Act, as Section 67 is limited to calling for information and examining persons during an inquiry antecedent to investigation, not for recording confessions as substantive evidence.
On this section: Power of Magistrate to issue warrant for arrest or search in NDPS offences
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State of Delhi vs Ram Avtar @ Rama
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
When a mandatory safeguard or fundamental right is provided under criminal law, particularly under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act Section 50, which requires the searching officer to explicitly inform the person to be searched of his right to be searched in the presence of a Gazetted Officer or Magistrate, non-compliance with this obligation renders the recovery illegal. An illegal recovery cannot form the foundation for conviction of unlawful possession under Section 21 of the Act, regardless of whether witness testimony or other independent evidence corroborates the recovery, because unlawful possession is the sine qua non for such conviction and must be established through lawful means. The doctrine of substantial compliance does not apply to such mandatory safeguards, which require strict compliance.
On this section: Sections under which the search of a person can be conducted. The Court noted the conditions under which these searches must be performed and referenced in the context of Section 50 requirements.
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.
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… inclusion' but the impact of the under-inclusion of subjugating a woman to a position of inferiority.118 A high standard of scrutiny was applied to test the validity of an under-inclusive provision. 67. In Basheer v. State of Kerala 119, the constitutional validity of the proviso to sub-Section (1) of Section 41 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Amendment) Act 2001120 was under challenge. By the 2001 Amendment, the sentence for offences under the NDPS Act was altered. Section 41, included by the 2001 Amendment, provided that the amended provisions shall apply to all pending cases before the court as on 2 …
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… inclusion' but the impact of the under-inclusion of subjugating a woman to a position of inferiority.118 A high standard of scrutiny was applied to test the validity of an under-inclusive provision. 67. In Basheer v. State of Kerala 119, the constitutional validity of the proviso to sub-Section (1) of Section 41 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Amendment) Act 2001120 was under challenge. By the 2001 Amendment, the sentence for offences under the NDPS Act was altered. Section 41, included by the 2001 Amendment, provided that the amended provisions shall apply to all pending cases before the court as on 2 …
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… inclusion' but the impact of the under-inclusion of subjugating a woman to a position of inferiority.118 A high standard of scrutiny was applied to test the validity of an under-inclusive provision. 67. In Basheer v. State of Kerala 119, the constitutional validity of the proviso to sub-Section (1) of Section 41 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Amendment) Act 2001120 was under challenge. By the 2001 Amendment, the sentence for offences under the NDPS Act was altered. Section 41, included by the 2001 Amendment, provided that the amended provisions shall apply to all pending cases before the court as on 2 …
Made under this section, and citing it
4 instruments name this provision in its title or its text without being made under it.
- Making easy availability of “Morphine’ drugs to needy cancer patients in Tamil Nadu – Simplification of procedure and making availability of medicines through Recognised Medical Institutions Suggestions of government of India and Representations of Indian Association of Palliative Care and Cancer Institute, Adyar accepted - Procedure prescribed – Amendments to Tamil Nadu Narcotic Drug Rules, 1995 - Orders issued.Order 2000
- SO 821-826 (E)Notification 1985
- SO 821-826 (E)Notification 1985
- The Tamil Nadu Narcotic Drugs Rules, 1985Rule 1985
Questions about Section 41
What have the courts held on Section 41 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act?
M. Uma Maheswar vs State of Andhra Pradesh (03 Oct 2005) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: Section 41 empowers Magistrates and gazetted officers to issue warrants and authorizations for search, seizure and arrest. Section 41(1) refers to Magistrate powers; Section 41(2) refers to gazetted officer authorization powers. The court distinguished this from Section 42 - noting that gazetted officers acting under their own authority under Section 41(2) do not need to comply with Section 42(2) reporting requirements. Another 2 judgments on this section are set out below, all of them from the Supreme Court. They run from 2005 to 2020.
How do I find court cases under Section 41 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances 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: NDPS Act 41, section 41 NDPS Act, section 41 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act. People searching for it also type ndps 41 2 and 41 ndps act. 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 M. Uma Maheswar vs State of Andhra Pradesh (03 Oct 2005).
What should I read with Section 41 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, and has it changed?
Its own text turns on section 42 (Power of entry, search, seizure and arrest without warrant or authorisation), so none of them can safely be read on its own. 3 other provisions in this corpus refer back to it. 4 instruments name it without being made under it, most recently Making easy availability of “Morphine’ drugs to needy cancer patients in Tamil Nadu – Simplification of procedure and making availability of medicines through Recognised Medical Institutions Suggestions of government of India and Representations of Indian Association of Palliative Care and Cancer Institute, Adyar accepted - Procedure prescribed – Amendments to Tamil Nadu Narcotic Drug Rules, 1995 - Orders issued. (2000), then SO 821-826 (E) (1985).
When did Section 41 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act come into force?
Section 41 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, cited as NDPS Act 41, came into force on 14 Nov 1985, having been enacted on 16 Sep 1985. It is in force as at the date shown on this page.
Other sections of this Act
- 2. Definitions1747 words
- 68B. Definitions819 words
- 9. Power of Central Government to permit, control and regulate816 words
- 36A. Offences triable by Special Courts631 words
- 10. Power of State Government to permit, control and regulate568 words
- 42. Power of entry, search, seizure and arrest without warrant or authorisation507 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 14 Oct 2026. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.