#THE ARMED FORCES (SPECIAL POWERS) ACT, 1958 

##ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS 

SECTIONS 

1. Short title and extent. 
2. Definitions. 
3. Power to declare areas to be disturbed areas. 
4. Special powers of the armed forces. 
5. Arrested persons to be made over to the police. 
6. Protection to persons acting under Act. 
7. [Repealed.] 

 

#THE ARMED FORCES (SPECIAL POWERS) ACT, 1958 

##ACT NO. 28 OF 1958 

[11th September, 1958.] 

An Act to enable certain special powers to be conferred upon members of the armed forces in 
disturbed  areas in the States of Arunachal  Pradesh,  Assam,  Manipur,  Meghalaya, 
Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura.

BE it enacted by Parliament in the Ninth Year of the Republic of India as follows:― 

1. **Short title and extent.**―(1) This Act may be called the Armed Forces (Special Powers) 
Act, 1958.

(2) It extends to the whole of the States of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, 
Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura. 

2. **Definitions.**―In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,― 

  (a) “armed forces” means the military forces and the air forces operating as land forces, and 
includes any other armed forces of the Union so operating; 

  (b) “disturbed area” means an area which is for the time being declared by notification under 
section 3 to be a disturbed area; 

  (c) all other words and expressions used herein, but not defined and defined in the Air Force 
Act, 1950 (45 of 1950), or the Army Act, 1950 (46 of 1950), shall have the meanings respectively 
assigned to them in those Acts. 

3. **Power to declare areas to be disturbed areas.**―If,  in  relation  to  any  State  or  Union 
territory  to  which  this  Act  extends,  the  Governor  of  that  State  or  the  Administrator  of  that  Union 
territory or the Central Government, in either case, is of the opinion that the whole or any part of such 
State or Union territory, as the case may be, is in such a disturbed or dangerous condition that the use 
of armed forces in aid of the civil power is necessary, the Governor of that State or the Administrator 
of that Union territory or the Central Government, as the case may be, may, by notification in the 
Official  Gazette,  declare  the  whole  or  such  part  of  such  State  or  Union  territory  to  be  a  disturbed 
area.

4. **Special powers of the armed forces.**―Any  commissioned  officer,  warrant  officer,  non-
commissioned officer or any other person of equivalent rank in the armed forces may, in a disturbed 
area,― 

  (a) if he is of opinion that it is necessary so to do for the maintenance of public order, after 
giving such due warning as he may consider necessary, fire upon or otherwise use force, even to 
the causing of death, against any person who is acting in contravention of any law or order for the 
time being in force in the disturbed area prohibiting the assembly of five or more persons or the 
carrying of weapons or of things capable of being used as weapons or of fire-arms, ammunition or 
explosive substances; 

  (b) if he is of opinion that it is necessary so to do, destroy any arms dump, prepared or fortified 
position or shelter from which armed attacks are made or are likely to be made or are attempted to 
be made, or any structure used as a training camp for armed volunteers or utilised as a hide-out by 
armed gangs or absconders wanted for any offence; 

  (c) arrest, without warrant, any person who has committed a cognizable offence or against whom 
a reasonable suspicion exists that he has committed or is about to commit a cognizable offence and 
may use such force as may be necessary to effect the arrest; 

  (d) enter  and  search  without  warrant  any  premises  to  make  any  such  arrest  as  aforesaid  or  to 
recover  any  person  believed  to  be  wrongfully  restrained  or  confined  or  any  property  reasonably 
suspected  to  be  stolen  property  or  any  arms,  ammunition  or  explosive  substances  believed  to  be 
unlawfully kept in such premises, and may for that purpose use such force as may be necessary. 

5. **Arrested persons to be made over to the police.**―Any person arrested and taken into custody 
under this Act shall be made over to the officer in charge of the nearest police station with the least 
possible delay, together with a report of the circumstances occasioning the arrest. 

6. **Protection to persons acting under Act.**―No prosecution, suit or other legal proceeding shall 
be  instituted,  except  with  the  previous  sanction  of  the  Central  Government,  against  any  person  in 
respect of anything done or purported to be done in exercise of the powers conferred by this Act. 

7. *[Repeal and Saving.] Rep. by the Repealing and Amending Act, 1960 (58 of 1960), s. 2 and the 
First Schedule* (w.e.f. 26-12-1960).