Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 :
Short title, extent and commencement .
Section – 1 . (1) This Act may be called the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.
(2) It extends to the whole of India except the State of Jammu and Kashmir:
Provided that the provisions of this Code, other than those relating to Chapters VIII, X and XI thereof, shall not apply—
| (a) | to the State of Nagaland, | |
| (b) | to the tribal areas, |
but the concerned State Government may, by notification, apply such provisions or any of them to the whole or part of the State of Nagaland or such tribal areas, as the case may be, with such supplemental, incidental or consequential modifications, as may be specified in the notification.
Explanation : In this section, “tribal areas” means the territories which immediately before the 21st day of January, 1972, were included in the tribal areas of Assam, as referred to in paragraph 20 of the Sixth Schedule to the Constitution, other than those within the local limits of the municipality of Shillong.
(3) It shall come into force on the 1st day of April, 1974.
COMMENTS
Non-applicability to J & K State – Like the old Code, the new Code also does not extend to the State of Jammu and Kashmir in view of the special procedure prescribed under article 370 of the Constitution for legislation for that State in respect of matters mentioned in the Concurrent List.
Applicability to Nagaland – As regards the State of Nagaland and the tribal areas of Assam (as specified in the Sixth Schedule to the Constitution), most of the provisions relating to (a) security proceedings (Chapter VIII), (b) maintenance of public order and tranquillity (Chapter X) and (c) preventive action of the police (Chapter XI) are already inforce in large measure in those areas. Hence the proviso stipulates that other provisions contained in the Code shall not apply to Nagaland and tribal areas unless the concerned State Government extends them, by notification with such modifications, etc., as may be necessary.
Presidency towns – The old Code had also excluded from its purview the Commissioners of Police in the Presidency Towns, the police in Bombay and Calcutta, the village headmen in the erstwhile State of Madras and the village police officers in the composite State of Bombay. The new Code has omitted these exceptions and it now applies uniformly in all these towns.