Chapter X STATE RESERVE POLICE FORCE

144. Definitions. In this Chapter, unless the context otherwise requires,— (a) “active duty” means,— (i) the duty to investigate offences involving a breach of peace or danger to life or property and to search for and apprehend persons concerned in such offences or who are so desperate and dangerous as to render their being at large hazardous to the community; (ii) the duty to take all adequate measures for the extinguishing of fires or to prevent damage to person or property on the occasion of such occurrences as fires, floods, earthquakes, enemy action or riots and to restore peace and preserve order on such occasions; (iii) such other duty as may be specified to be active duty by the Government or the Inspector-General in a direction issued under section 151; (b) ‘Commandant’ and ‘Assistant Commandant’ mean respectively persons appointed to be those officers by Government under section 146; (c) ‘follower’ means any person appointed to do the work of a cook, mess servant, washerman, cobbler, barber, tailor, sweeper or an orderly in connection with the State Reserve Police Force; (d) ‘members of the subordinate ranks’ means members of the State Reserve Police of and below the rank of Subedar Major; (e) ‘Reserve Police Officer’ means any member of the State Reserve Police Force established under this Chapter; (f) ‘superior officer’ means in relation to any Reserve Police Officer, a Reserve Police Officer of a higher rank than, or of a higher grade in the same class as, or of the same rank as, but senior to, himself.

(1) The Government may establish and maintain an armed reserve police force known as the State Reserve Police Force, in such manner as may be prescribed. (2) The Government or any officer empowered by it in this behalf may,— (a) divide the State Reserve Police Force into battalions; (b) sub-divide each battalion into companies and each company into platoons; (c) post any battalion, company or platoon at such places as the Government or the officer empowered by it in this behalf may deem fit.

146. Superintendence, control and administration of Force. (1) The Government may appoint for each battalion a Commandant who shall be a person of the rank of a Superintendent and Assistant Commandments of the rank of Deputy Superintendents. (2) The Commandant, the Assistant Commandant, and every such other officer so appointed shall have and may exercise such powers and authority as may be provided by or under this Act. (3) Subject to the general or special orders of the Government the Inspector-General of Police shall appoint the Subedar Majors and Subedars.

147. Enrolment. (1) Before any person appointed to be a Reserve Police Officer joins his appointment a declaration in the form in Schedule II shall be read out and, if he so desires, explained to him in the presence of a Commandant or an Assistant Commandant or a Police Officer not lower in rank than a Superintendent or a Deputy Commissioner of Police and shall be signed by him in token of his having undertaken to abide by the conditions prescribed therein. The declaration shall then be attested by such Commandant, Assistant Commandant or Police Officer, as the case may be. (2) No Reserve Police Officer shall resign his appointment except in accordance with the terms of the declaration signed by him under sub-section (1). (3) If any Reserve Police Officer resigns in contravention of this section, he shall be liable, without prejudice to any other penalty imposed by this Act or any other law for the time being in force, on the order of the Commandant to forfeit all arrears of pay due to him.

148. Transfers. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, it shall be competent for the Government to transfer members of the Police Force appointed under Chapter II, to the State Reserve Police Force established under this Chapter and vice versa:

(1) A Subedar Major and Subedar shall, on appointment, receive from the Inspector-General a certificate of appointment containing particulars of his name, age and his previous service, if any. (2) Every Reserve Police Officer below the rank of a Subedar shall on appointment receive a certificate in the form of Schedule III, which shall be issued under the seal of the Commandant. (3) Every person who for any reason ceases to be a Reserve Police Officer, shall forthwith deliver up to an officer empowered by the Commandant to receive the same, his certificate of appointment and the arms, accoutrements, clothing and other necessaries which have been furnished to him for the execution of his office.

The Commandant shall, subject to the orders of the Inspector-General of Police, direct and regulate all matters of arms, drill, exercise, mutual relations, distribution of duties, and all the matters of executive detail in the fulfilment of their duties by the members of the battalion in his charge.

(1) Every Reserve Police Officer shall, for the purposes of this Act, be deemed to be always on duty in the State of Karnataka and any Reserve Police Officer and any member or body of Reserve Police Officers may, if the Government or the Inspector-General of Police so directs, be employed on active duty for so long as and wherever the service of the same may be required. (2) Every direction issued under sub-section (1) shall specify that the duty on which any Reserve Police Officer or any member or body of such officers is directed to be employed shall be deemed as active duty for the purpose of this Act. Explanation.—The direction of the Government or of the Inspector-General of Police whether a Reserve Police Officer is required or is on active duty shall be final. (3) A Reserve Police Officer employed on active duty under sub-section (1), or when a member or body of Reserve Police Officers are so employed, the officer in charge of such member or body shall be responsible for the efficient performance of that duty and all police officers who but for the employment of one or more reserve police officers or body of reserve police officers would be responsible for the performance of that duty will, to the best of their ability, assist and co-operate with the said reserve police officer or officers in charge of a member or body of reserve police officers.

(1) When employed on active duty at any place under sub-section (1) of section 151, the senior reserve police officer of the highest rank not being lower than that of a Naik present shall be deemed to be an officer in charge of the police station for the purposes of Chapter IX of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898. (2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sections 100 and 103 of the Indian Penal Code, a Reserve Police Officer employed as aforesaid may, when there is reasonable apprehension of assault on himself or any Reserve Police Officer or of damage or harm to any property or person which or whom it is his duty to protect, use such force to the wrong doer or assailant as may be reasonably necessary even though the use of such force may involve risk of death of the wrong doer or the assailant or any other person assisting such wrong doer or assailant.

Offence in respect of resignation contrary to provisions. If any reserve police officer resigns his appointment in contravention of section 147, he shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year or with fine which may extend to Rs. 1,000 or with both.

Offence in respect of refusal to deliver certificate of appointment, etc. Any reserve police officer who wilfully neglects or refuses to deliver up his certificate of appointment or any other article in accordance with sub-section (3) of section 149, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three months or with fine which may extend to Rs. 500 or with both.

More heinous offences. Every Reserve Police Officer who,— (a) begins, excites, causes, or conspires to cause or joins in any mutiny, or being present at any mutiny, does not use his utmost endeavours to suppress it by force of arms, if necessary, or knowing, or having reason to believe in, the existence of any mutiny, or of any intention or conspiracy to mutiny or of any conspiracy against the State does not, without delay, give information thereof to his superior officer present at or near the place, or (b) uses, or attempts to use criminal force to, or commits an assault on his superior officer, knowing or having reason to believe him to be such, whether on or off duty; or (c) shamefully abandons or delivers up any post, guard, building, fortification, or property which is committed to his charge, or which it is his duty to defend; or (d) in the presence of any person in arms against whom it is his duty to act, shamefully casts away his arms or his ammunition or intentionally uses words of any other means to induce any reserve police officer or any police officer to abstain from acting against any such person in arms, or to discourage such officer from acting against any such person in arms or who is otherwise guilty of cowardice or misbehavior in the presence of any such person in arms; or (e) directly or indirectly holds correspondence with, or communicates intelligence to, or assists, or relieves, any person in arms against the State, or any person conspiring against Government or public security or any person to be arrested, or omits to discover immediately to his superior officer present, any such correspondence or communication coming to his knowledge; or (f) directly or indirectly sells, gives away, or otherwise disposes, or agrees to, or assists in, the sale, gift or disposal of any arms, ammunition or equipment to any such person as aforesaid, or knowingly harbors or protects any such person; or (g) while on active duty,— (i) disobeys the lawful command of his superior officer; or (ii) deserts his force or his post; or (iii) being a sentry, or otherwise detailed to remain alert, sleeps at his post or quits it without being regularly relieved or without leave; or (iv) without authority leaves his commanding officer for any purpose whatsoever; or (v) uses criminal force to, or commits an assault on, any person whom he has not any reason to believe to be in arms against the State and against whom it is his duty to act, or without authority breaks into any house or other place for plunder or any illegal purpose, or wilfully and unnecessarily plunders, destroys or damages any property of any kind; or (vi) intentionally causes or spreads a false alarm in action or in camp, garrison or quarters, shall, on conviction, be punished with rigorous imprisonment for a term which may extend to fourteen years and shall also be liable to fine. Explanation.—A Reserve Police Officer shall be deemed to desert the force if he leaves his place of duty or posting without the permission of his superior officer and he shall be deemed to desert his post if he leaves any sentry, beat, point, building, vehicle, or other place at which or in which he is specifically ordered by his superior officer to perform the duty assigned to him.

Less heinous offences. Every Reserve Police Officer who,- (a) assaults or uses or attempts to use criminal force to any sentry; or (b) being in command of a guard, piquet or patrol, refuses to receive any prisoner lawfully made over to his charge, or whether in such command or not, releases any prisoner or person without proper authority or negligently suffers any prisoner or person to escape; or (c) being in command of a guard, piquet or patrol, permits any person belonging to such guard, piquet or patrol to engage himself in gambling or other behaviour prejudicial to good order and discipline; or (d) being under arrest or in confinement, leaves his arrest or confinement before he is set at liberty by lawful authority; or (e) is grossly insubordinate to his superior officer in the execution of his office; or (f) refuses to superintend or assist in making or carrying out of any construction of any description ordered to be made either in quarters or in the field; or (g) assaults or otherwise ill-uses any reserve police officer with reference to whom he is a superior officer; or (h) designedly or through neglect damages or loses or fraudulently or without due authority disposes of his arms, clothes, tools, equipment, ammunition, accoutrements or other necessaries furnished to him for the execution of his office or any such articles entrusted to him or to any other person; or (i) malingers, feigns, or produces disease or infirmity in himself or intentionally delays his cure or aggravates his disease or infirmity; or (j) with intent to render himself or any other person unfit for duty, voluntarily causes hurt to himself or any other person; or (k) commits extortion or without lawful authority extorts from any person carriage, porterage or provisions;

A Reserve Police Officer who, being in command of any guard, piquet, party, patrol or detachment and knowing of the commission or of a design to commit any offence punishable under the preceding three sections, by or on the part of any reserve police officer under his command, intentionally omits or without reasonable excuse, the burden of proving which shall lie on him, fails to give information of such commission or design to his superior officer shall, on conviction, be punished with rigorous imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months or with fine which may extend to Rs. 500 or with both.

Place of imprisonment and liability to dismissal on imprisonment. (1) Every person sentenced under this Act to imprisonment may be dismissed from the State Reserve Police Force, and his pay, allowance and any other moneys due to him, as well as any medals and decorations received by him shall further be liable to forfeiture. (2) Every such person shall, if he is so dismissed, be imprisoned in the prescribed prison, but if he is also not dismissed from the State Reserve Police Force, he may, if the Court so directs, be confined in the quarter-guard or such other place as the Court may consider suitable.

Minor punishments. (1) A Commandant, or subject to the control of the Commandant, an Assistant Commandant or subject to the same control, an officer not below the rank of Jamadar in independent command of a detachment or an outpost or in temporary command of Group Headquarters during the absence of the Commandant or Assistant Commandant may award to any reserve police officer not higher in rank than a Battalion Havildar Major or to any follower subject to his authority, any of the following punishments for the commission of any offence against discipline which is not otherwise provided for in this Act, or which in the opinion of the Commandant, Assistant Commandant or officer, as the case may be, is not of sufficiently serious nature to call for the prosecution before a criminal court, that is to say, — (a) punishment drill, extra guard, fatigue or any other duty for a term which may extend when the order is passed by the Commandant to fourteen days, and, when the order is passed by any other officer, to seven days; (b) forfeiture of pay and allowance or such portion of pay and allowance as he considers necessary for a period which may extend, when the order is passed by the Commandant, to one month, and when the order is passed by any other officer, to ten days; (c) fine to an amount not exceeding one month’s pay: Provided that,— (i) no power under this sub-section shall be exercised by a Commandant or Assistant Commandant or other officer not below the rank of a Jamadar unless the person to be awarded any of these punishments is under the command of such officer at the time when the breach of discipline or misconduct occurred and also when the power is exercised, and (ii) when more than one officer are competent under proviso (i) to exercise the power, the most senior of such officers shall exercise the power. (2) Any of the punishments specified in sub-section (1) may be awarded separately or with any one or more of the others: Provided that fine shall not be awarded in combination with forfeiture of pay or allowances. (3) No appeal shall lie from any order or punishment passed under this section except from an order of punishment of fine as provided in sub-section (4). (4) An appeal against any order awarding punishment of fine shall lie to the Government or to such officer as the Government may by general or special order specify in this behalf. (5) Whenever a Commandant or an Assistant Commandant or other officer passes an order under sub-section (1), he shall enter in a book to be kept for the purpose a brief description of the default, together with the names of witnesses, explanation of the defaulter and the order of punishment and shall sign and date each such order.

Protection for acts of members of Force. (1) In any suit or proceeding against any member of the State Reserve Police Force for any act done by him in pursuance of a warrant or order of a competent authority, it shall be lawful for him to plead that such act was done by him under the authority of such warrant or order. (2) Any such plea may be proved by the production of the warrant or order directing the act, and if it is so proved, the member of the said Force shall thereupon be discharged from liability in respect of the act so done by him, notwithstanding any defect in the jurisdiction of the authority which issued such warrant or order.

Except as specifically provided in this Chapter, every Reserve Police Officer shall for all purposes be deemed to be a police officer as defined in section 2, and the provisions of this Act shall except in so far as they are inconsistent with the provisions of this Chapter apply to every such Reserve Police Officer.