23. Special Courts.-
(1) The Central Government or a State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette,
constitute one or more Special Courts for such area or areas, or for such case or class or group of
cases, as may be specified in the notification.
(2) Where a notification constituting a Special Court for any area or areas or for any case or class or
group of cases is issued by the Central Government under sub-section (1), and a notification
constituting a Special Court for the same area or areas or for the same case or class or group of cases
has also been issued by the State Government under that sub-section, the Special Court constituted
by the Central Government, whether the notification constituting such Court is issued before or after
the issue of the notification constituting the Special Court by the State Government, shall have, and
the Special Court constituted by the State Government shall not have, jurisdiction to try any offence
committed in that area or areas or, as the case may be, the case or class or group of cases and all
cases pending before any Special Court constituted by the State Government shall stand transferred
to the Special Court constituted by the Central Government.
(3) Where any question arises as to the jurisdiction of any Special Court, it shall be referred to the
Central Government whose decision in the matter shall be final.
(4) A Special Court shall be presided over by a judge to be appointed by the Central Government or,
as the case may be, the State Government, with the concurrence of the Chief Justice of the High
Court.
(5) The Central Government or, as the case may be, the State Government may also appoint, with the
concurrence of the Chief Justice of the High Court, additional judges to exercise jurisdiction of a
Special Court.
(6) A person shall not be qualified for appointment as a judge or an additional judge of a Special Court
unless he is, immediately before such appointment, a sessions judge or an additional sessions judge
in any State.
(7) For the removal of doubts, it is hereby provided that the attainment, by a person appointed as a
judge or an additional judge of a Special Court, of the age of superannuation under the rules
applicable to him in the service to which he belongs, shall not affect his continuance as such judge or
additional judge.
(8) Where any additional judge or additional judges is or are appointed in a Special Court, the judge of
the Special Court may, from time to time, by general or special order, in writing, provide for the
distribution of business of the Special Court among all judges including himself and the additional
judge or additional judges and also for the disposal of urgent business in the event of his absence or
the absence of any additional judge.
24. Place of sitting.-
A Special Court may, on its own motion, or on an application made by the Public Prosecutor and if it
considers it expedient or desirable so to do, sit for any of its proceedings at any place other than its
ordinary place of sitting:
Provided that nothing in this section shall be construed to change the place of sitting of a Special
Court constituted by a State Government to any place outside that State.
25. Jurisdiction of Special Courts.-
(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code, every offence punishable under any provision of
this Act shall be triable only by the Special Court within whose local jurisdiction it was committed or, as
the case may be, by the Special Court constituted for trying such offence under section 23.
(2) If, having regard to the exigencies of the situation prevailing in a State,—
(a) it is not possible to have a fair, impartial or speedy trial; or
(b) it is not feasible to have the trial without occasioning the breach of peace or grave risk to the safety
of the accused, the witnesses, the Public Prosecutor and a judge of the Special Court or any of them;
or
(c) it is not otherwise in the interests of justice,
the Supreme Court may transfer any case pending before a Special Court to any other Special Court
within that State or in any other State and the High Court may transfer any case pending before a
Special Court situated in that State to any other Special Court within the State.
(3) The Supreme Court or the High Court, as the case may be, may act under this section either on
the application of the Central Government or a party interested and any such application shall be
made by motion, which shall, except when the applicant is the Attorney-General of India, be supported
by an affidavit or affirmation.
26. Power of Special Courts with respect to other offences.-
(1) When trying any offence, a Special Court may also try any other offence with which the accused
may, under the Code, be charged at the same trial if the offence is connected with such other offence.
(2) If, in the course of any trial under this Act of any offence, it is found that the accused person has
committed any other offence under this Act or under any other law, the Special Court may convict
such person of such other offence and pass any sentence or award punishment authorised by this Act
or such rule or, as the case may be, under such other law.
27. Power to direct for samples, etc.-
(1) When a police officer investigating a case requests the Court of a Chief Judicial Magistrate or the
Court of a Chief Metropolitan Magistrate in writing for obtaining samples of handwriting, finger-prints,
foot-prints, photographs, blood, saliva, semen, hair, voice of any accused person, reasonably
suspected to be involved in the commission of an offence under this Act, it shall be lawful for the Court
of a Chief Judicial Magistrate or the Court of a Chief Metropolitan Magistrate to direct that such
samples be given by the accused person to the police officer either through a medical practitioner or
otherwise, as the case may be.
(2) If any accused person refuses to give samples as provided in sub-section (1), the Court shall draw
adverse inference against the accused.
28. Public Prosecutors.-
(1) For every Special Court, the Central Government or, as the case may be, the State Government,
shall appoint a person to be the Public Prosecutor and may appoint one or more persons to be the
Additional Public Prosecutor or Additional Public Prosecutors:
Provided that the Central Government or, as the case may be, the State Government, may also
appoint for any case or class or group of cases, a Special Public Prosecutor.
(2) A person shall not be qualified to be appointed as a Public Prosecutor or an Additional Public
Prosecutor or a Special Public Prosecutor under this section unless he has been in practice as an
Advocate for not less than seven years or has held any post, for a period of not less than seven years,
under the Union or a State, requiring special knowledge of law.
(3) Every person appointed as a Public Prosecutor or an Additional Public Prosecutor or a Special
Public Prosecutor under this section shall be deemed to be a Public Prosecutor within the meaning of
clause (u) of section 2 of the Code, and the provisions of the Code shall have effect accordingly.
29. Procedure and powers of Special Courts.-
(1) Subject to the provisions of section 50, a Special Court may take cognizance of any offence,
without the accused being committed to it for trial, upon receiving a complaint of facts that constitute
such offence or upon a police report of such facts.
(2) Where an offence triable by a Special Court is punishable with imprisonment for a term not
exceeding three years or with fine or with both, the Special Court may, notwithstanding anything
contained in sub-section (1) of section 260 or section 262 of the Code, try the offence in a summary
way in accordance with the procedure prescribed in the Code and the provisions of sections 263 to
265 of the Code, shall so far as may be, apply to such trial:
Provided that when, in the course of a summary trial under this sub-section, it appears to the Special
Court that the nature of the case is such that it is undesirable to try it in a summary way, the Special
Court shall recall any witnesses who may have been examined and proceed to re-hear the case in the
manner provided by the provisions of the Code for the trial of such offence and the said provisions
shall apply to and in relation to a Special Court as they apply to and in relation to a Magistrate:
Provided further that in the case of any conviction in a summary trial under this section, it shall be
lawful for a Special Court to pass a sentence of imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year and
with fine which may extend to rupees five lakh.
(3) Subject to the other provisions of this Act, a Special Court shall, for the purpose of trial of any
offence, have all the powers of a Court of Session and shall try such offence as if it were a Court of
Session so far as may be in accordance with the procedure prescribed in the Code for the trial before
a Court of Session.
(4) Subject to the other provisions of this Act, every case transferred to a Special Court under section
25 shall be dealt with as if such case had been transferred under section 406 of the Code to such
Special Court.
(5) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code, but subject to the provisions of section 299 of the
Code, a Special Court may, if it thinks fit and for reasons to be recorded by it, proceed with the trial in
the absence of the accused or his pleader and record the evidence of any witness, subject to the right
of the accused to recall the witness for cross-examination.
30. Protection of witnesses.-
(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code, the proceedings under this Act may, for reasons
to be recorded in writing, be held in camera if the Special Court so desires.
(2) A Special Court, if on an application made by a witness in any proceeding before it or by the Public
Prosecutor in relation to such witness or on its own motion, is satisfied that the life of such witness is in
danger, it may, for reasons to be recorded in writing, take such measures as it deems fit for keeping
the identity and address of such witness secret.
(3) In particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the provisions of sub-section (2), the
measures which a Special Court may take under that sub-section may include—
(a) the holding of the proceedings at a place to be decided by the Special Court;
(b) the avoiding of the mention of the names and addresses of the witnesses in its orders or judgments
or in any records of the case accessible to public;
(c) the issuing of any directions for securing that the identity and address of the witnesses are not
disclosed;
(d) a decision that it is in the public interest to order that all or any of the proceedings pending before
such a Court shall not be published in any manner.
(4) Any person who contravenes any decision or direction issued under sub-section (3) shall be
punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year and with fine which may
extend to one thousand rupees.
31. Trial by Special Courts to have precedence.-
The trial under this Act of any offence by a Special Court shall have precedence over the trial of any
other case against the accused in any other court (not being a Special Court) and shall be concluded
in preference to the trial of such other case and accordingly the trial of such other case shall remain in
abeyance.
32. Certain confessions made to police officers to be taken into consideration.-
(1) Notwithstanding anything in the Code or in the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 (1 of 1872), but subject
to the provisions of this section, a confession made by a person before a police officer not lower in
rank than a Superintendent of Police and recorded by such police officer either in writing or on any
mechanical or electronic device like cassettes, tapes or sound tracks from out of which sound or
images can be reproduced, shall be admissible in the trial of such person for an offence under this Act
or the rules made thereunder.
(2) A police officer shall, before recording any confession made by a person under sub-section (1),
explain to such person in writing that he is not bound to make a confession and that if he does so, it
may be used against him:
Provided that where such person prefers to remain silent, the police officer shall not compel or induce
him to make any confession.
(3) The confession shall be recorded in an atmosphere free from threat or inducement and shall be in
the same language in which the person makes it.
(4) The person from whom a confession has been recorded under sub-section (1), shall be produced
before the Court of a Chief Metropolitan Magistrate or the Court of a Chief Judicial Magistrate along
with the original statement of confession, written or recorded on mechanical or electronic device within
forty-eight hours.
(5) The Chief Metropolitan Magistrate or the Chief Judicial Magistrate, shall, record the statement, if
any, made by the person so produced and get his signature or thumb impression and if there is any
complaint of torture, such person shall be directed to be produced for medical examination before a
Medical Officer not lower in rank than an Assistant Civil Surgeon and thereafter, he shall be sent to
judicial custody.
33. Power to transfer cases to regular courts.-
Where, after taking cognizance of any offence, a Special Court is of the opinion that the offence is not
triable by it, it shall, notwithstanding that it has no jurisdiction to try such offence, transfer the case for
the trial of such offence to any court having jurisdiction under the Code and the Court to which the
case is transferred may proceed with the trial of the offence as if it had taken cognizance of the
offence.
34. Appeal.-
(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code, an appeal shall lie from any judgment, sentence
or order, not being an interlocutory order, of a Special Court to the High Court both on facts and on
law.
Explanation.—For the purposes of this section, "High Court" means a High Court within whose
jurisdiction, a Special Court which passed the judgment, sentence or order, is situated.
(2) Every appeal under sub-section (1) shall be heard by a bench of two Judges of the High Court.
(3) Except as aforesaid, no appeal or revision shall lie to any court from any judgment, sentence or
order including an interlocutory order of a Special Court.
(4) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (3) of section 378 of the Code, an appeal shall
lie to the High Court against an order of the Special Court granting or refusing bail.
(5) Every appeal under this section shall be preferred within a period of thirty days from the date of the
judgment, sentence or order appealed from:
Provided that the High Court may entertain an appeal after the expiry of the said period of thirty days if
it is satisfied that the appellant had sufficient cause for not preferring the appeal within the period of
thirty days.
35. Transitional provisions and transfer of pending proceedings.-
(1) The jurisdiction conferred by this Act on a Special Court, shall, until a Special Court is constituted
under section 23, in the case of any offence punishable under this Act, notwithstanding anything
contained in the Code, be exercised by the Court of Session of the division in which such offence has
been committed and it shall have all the powers and follow the procedure provided under this Chapter.
(2) On and from the date when the Special Court is constituted under section 23, every trial under the
provisions of this Act, which would have been required to be held before the Special Court, shall stand
transferred to that Court on the date on which it is constituted.