Owner or Occupier of Land on which an Unlawful Assembly is Held - Section 154
Section 154 of the Indian Penal Code states that whenever a riot or an unlawful assembly occurs the owner or the occupier of that land has to be punished with a fine of the amount which shall not exceed 1000 rupees. If the agent or the owner had the knowledge that the riot or the unlawful assembly is going to take place on their property and they don’t take a proper step to prevent it then in that case they will be held responsible. It is their duty to report to the principal officer of the nearest police station. Also if they don’t take any step in order to prevent that then also in that case the owner and the agent will be held responsible. As it is their duty to prevent these types of situations. The section includes the renters, mortgagees, etc. Principle of Vicarious Liability: Under section 154,155, 156 of the Indian Penal Code incorporates the feeling of the principle of vicarious liability. Nature of the Offence: The fine for the offense is the punishment for up to 1000 rupees. It is a non-cognizable offense. The offense is bailable in nature. The offense is triable by any magistrate. The offense is Non- Compoundable in nature. Consult the best lawyer online Ingredients of Section 154 of the Indian Penal Code Unlawful assembly or the Riot shall take place. The land on which the unlawful assembly or the riot takes place, the owner of the land shall be punished with the fine which shall not be exceeding 1000 rupees. If the owner or his agent knows that there has been a riot or an unlawful assembly, or it is likely to be committed. Then it is their responsibility to report this to the principal police of the nearest police station and if they fail to do so then, in that case, they will be held responsible. If the owner or the agent has the reason to believe that the offense is likely to be committed then in that case the owner or the agent has the power to take a responsible step in order to ensure that the riot or the unlawful assembly. The step taken must be legal.
How to file/ defend your case under section 154of the IPC?
Since the offense is of the Non- Cognizable in nature then in that case the informant can approach the office in nature.
Then the police will record that information in his book which is prescribed by the State Government.
The complaint can be also made directly to the magistrate by the informant.
The complaint made can be in the form of an affidavit, petition, or letter. The form is not rigid. Here the informant has the choice to choose the method.
The magistrate will give the order under section 155 of the CrPC for the investigation and then the investigation will be conducted. After that, the investigation will be started by the police.
Police will carry out the investigation in the same way as it does in the case of cognizable offenses.
But here the arrest can be only done with the warrant.
As the offense is bailable in nature the arrestee has the right to be released on the bail.
The bail can be granted on the bail bonds by the police or by the order of the court.
After the investigation, the charge sheet has to be filed before the magistrate of the first class.
After this, the trial will take place.
As per the case of the Adesh Kumar Gupta v. CBI, W.P. (CRL) 725/2015 the court stated the police are responsible for writing down the case in the book of the informant and then report it to the magistrate.
Get in touch with the best lawyer online
Through Lawtendo you can connect to an appropriate lawyer for filing or defending your case for the offense under Section 154 of IPC. We, at Lawtendo, provide around 15000+ lawyers all over the country on our online platform. Lawtendo strives to facilitate legal services that are consumer-oriented,i.e, cost-effective and quality legal service.
This blog was drafted by Ms. Sonam Narayan, BA LLB, 4th Year Student, University of Petroleum and Energy Studies.
| Offence | Punishment | Cognizance | Bail | Triable By |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Owner or occupier of land on which an unlawful assembly is held | Fine upto 1000 Rupees | non-cognizable | Bailable | Any Magistrate |
| Offence | Owner or occupier of land on which an unlawful assembly is held |
|---|---|
| Punishment | Fine upto 1000 Rupees |
| Cognizance | non-cognizable |
| Bail | Bailable |
| Triable By | Any Magistrate |
