NOTIFICATIONS

[cottage cheese]

SUB_ Grant/renewal of arms licences in respect of non-prohibited bore weapons for all-India operation consequent to the amendment dated 24.1.1989 to the Arms Rules, 1962 - Instructions regarding:

1. I am directed to say that consequent to the amendments made to the Arms Rules, 1962 Vide this Ministry's Notification No. V-11026/24/876 ARMS dated 24th January, 1989, several queries are being received from State Governments and UT Administrations seeking directions and asking for definite guidelines for handling applications for arms licences for non-prohibited bore weapons. It is, therefore, proposed to clarify some important points related to arms licensing so that as far as possible there is no ambiguity left in this regard.

2. At the outset it may be stated that in the context of the prevailing conditions of law and order in the country and the international crime scenario in general the need to impose reasonable amount of restrictions on the right to possess arms of any nomenclature and their carrying/movement within specified jurisdiction is considered imperative for ensuring public peace and safety. Therefore, the Government of India's conscious policy to place adequate curbs on the unrestricted issue of fire-arms and their unrestrained movement/carrying from one part of the country to the other is hereby reiterated.

3. The amendments to the Arms Rules referred to in para 1 above envisage as follows:

(i) The District Magistrate can grant a licence valid for the district(or part of the district) under his jurisdiction;
(ii) The State Government can grant a licence valid for the entire State/part thereof (that is for more than one district) under their jurisdiction; and
(iii) The State Government can also grant the licences for all-India or any part thereof subject, however, to the prior approval of the Central Government (Ministry of Home Affairs).

4. In view of the above statutory obligations, therefore, whenever a person applies for grant of a fresh license the District Magistrate would, irrespective of the fact whether the applicant desires to have it for more than one district or for the whole State or for all-India, in the due discharge of his powers restrict its validity to the district(or part of the District). Where, however, the D.M. feels that the applicant is in genuine need of a licence for carrying the weapon outside the confines of the district or of the State or for all-India, he should forward his recommendations(giving full justification) to the State Government/UT Administration concerned for further consideration. On receipt of such recommendation the State Government/UT Administration should examine each case judiciously and then either accept or reject the grant of license as recommended by the D.M. In case of acceptance of the application for grant of an all-India license the matter would of course get referred to the Government of India (Ministry of Home Affairs) for final decision. An important point to be kept in view is that all reference to the Government of India for extending the validity of license on all-India basis should be made only after the licensees have actually procured the weapons.

5. As a rule all-India licenses shall be granted in very rare cases. The few exceptions where a consideration could be given would comprise the following categories:

(i) Ministers and Members of parliament;
(ii) Serving officers of Defence Services, Police and para-military organisations and officers of Government having liability to serve anywhere in India;
(iii) members of recognised Rifle Clubs and Rifle Associations for bona fide Sports & Games.

In all the above cases the State Governments should send their recommendations to the Central Government for obtaining a decision.

6. In the case of licenses coming up for renewal, that is to say the licences which had already been granted prior to the afore-mentioned amendments in the Arms Rules the DM should irrespective of the fact whether the earlier license was for more than one district or for the whole State or for All-India, restrict its validity to the jurisdiction of the district only and renew the licence. This he should do straightaway without any undue delay because the primary objective should be to say that the licensee obtains revalidation/ renewal within the specified period and the weapon (if any)held by the licencee is covered by a valid licence. Such action of The DM cannot be questioned in a Court of Law as he will be acting in accordance with the changes made in the relevant statute. The question as to whether it should be for more than one district or for the State or for all-India could be examined later on merits and suitable recommendation, if considered necessary, made to State Governments/ the Government of India (Ministry of Home Affairs).
This should take care of the bulk of current licences, when they come up for renewal, and will remove any greviance about non-renewal or delay in renewal.

7. It is to be noted that the conditions of a license are not intended to be varied during its term. The restriction referred to in para 6 above should be applied only when the licence comes up in its due term for renewal before the district authority. It will be desirable that the need for this restriction be suitably explained to the license holders at this stage and it is ensured that by and large the applicants are content with licenses having validity for the district. Only very genuine/deserving cases falling in the categories mentioned in para 5 above should be referred by the district authorities to the State Government/Central Government

8. The District Authority/District Magistrates are the final repository of information on arms licenses within their jurisdiction and necessary registers are also maintained by them. No change in the existing systems procedures is contemplated to be made. All applications for fresh licenses or renewal of licenses will continue to be processed by the District magistrates as hithertofore in the manner laid down. Only in few cases where the question of extending the validity of license beyond the jurisdiction (that is to say the district) is involved that thecases get referred to the State/UT authority or the Central Government as the case may be.

9. There is no over-emphasizing the point that the strictest possible control over the issue of fresh licenses(or for renewing the existing ones) has to be applied by all licensing authorities whether it be at a district level or the State Headquarters. The need for possession of weapon by the applicant should gone into meticulously and judiciously both at the stage of issue of fresh licence and then again when it comes up for renewal and only when fully established the applicant should, if otherwise not disqualified, be issued/renewed the licence. It should be borne in mind that renewal of a licence should not be accepted or done as a matter of course.

10. The receipt of this letter may please be acknowledged.

(GOI/MHA letter No. V-11026/8/89-Arms, dated 4.7.1989 to all State Governments/U.T. Administrations)

[nagarifle]

a bit long winded if you ask me. what the heck it does throw some light in to reasons why the government is in fear of the people.

nice one mate

[cottage cheese]

Other than the obvious, one can notice a number of subtle observations which are interesting.

If you look at part 2, the GOI/MHA apparently views gun ownership as a right....

"2. At the outset it may be stated that in the context of the prevailing conditions of law and order in the country and the international crime scenario in general the need to impose reasonable amount of restrictions on the right to possess arms of any nomenclature and their carrying/movement within specified jurisdiction is considered imperative for ensuring public peace and safety. Therefore, the Government of India's conscious policy to place adequate curbs on the unrestricted issue of fire-arms and their unrestrained movement/carrying from one part of the country to the other is hereby reiterated."

para 7 calls upon the licensing authorities to explain the "why's" to the applicants... which I doubt a majority of our pseudo feudal lords will ever do. That would be unthinkable... speaking on equal terms with civilian pukes. Doesn't the MHA know the social hierarchy? No way.

One can also appreciate that the genesis of the increase in licensing headaches in India is in para 9 of this notification. I'd noticed that from around this period (Late eighties) licensing authorities turned inexplicably hostile overnight. I suspect the problem is because most of the mentally challenged babus and administrations interpreted para-9 as "Don't issue" rather than "be meticulous"

Just my take.

regards,
cc

[nagarifle]

para 9: maybe one should get a court understanding of this?

para 2; need to impose reasonable amount of restrictions on the right to possess arms of any nomenclature.

the operative word to define the meaning of is 'reasonable'! once again a clarity is needed on this by the court.

that my 1/4 cent worth

[cottage cheese]

Here is a follow up notification from the MHA, to the earlier notification. It gives a fair idea of the shallow depth of thinking that many babus have particularly in the State Administrations. Note also that the central Govt. is consistently stating that the licence holders/applicants be not inconvenienced- a fact, perhaps lost to most babus in state administrations.

Grant/renewal of Arms Licence

1. Despite clear instruction having been issued Vide this Ministry's Letter No. V-11026/8/89-ARMS dated 9th July, 1989 and V-1109/L88-ARMS dated 28th Sept., 1989 on the above subject this Ministry has been receiving several references from State Governments/U.T.Administrations seeking several clarifications on various points as indicated below:

(1) What is the procedure for processing new applications for All India Licences in which the question of purchases of weapon does not arise?
(2) Who is the licensing authority for N.P Bore where jurisdiction of the license will be State-wide/country-wide?
(3) Who is the competent authority to grant permission for carrying firearms beyond the jurisdiction of the license?
(4) The other persons who are granted licences valid for district/State in the absence of Arms dealers in the District/State for which licenses are valid.
(5) Further, the license-holders can register their licences with another licensing authoriy(outside the District/State for which licenses are valid) subsequent to change of residence.

2. Clarifications in respect of above-said points are given seriatum below:

(1) The question of purchase of new weapon would not normally arise in two situations, namely, in cases of transfer of weapons to the legal heirs of the deceased licensees or in cases where licensees would like to gift the weapons to others. In such cases, after following the prescribed procedure licenses at the initial stage may be granted valid for the district only. Thereafter, if there is genuine need for extending the area of validity of the licence to all over the State/all over India necessary clearance from State Govt./Central Govt. as the case may be, should be obtained. However, in ase of prohibited bore/semi-automatic weapons proposals are to be sent to the Central Government.
(2) Non-prohibited bore weapons ordinarily come under category-III of Schedule-I appended to the Arms Rules, 1962. As per item 3(b) of amended Schedule-II of the Arms Rules, 19629Vide GSR No. 52E Dated 24/1/1989) the State Governments are the licensing authority to issue licences valid for the whole of the State or any specified part thereof. Further, State Governments are also the licensing authority for granting license valid for whole of India or specified part thereof. Such licences shall, however be granted only with the previous approval/consent of the Central Govt. in the Ministry of Home Affairs. In this connection instructions contained in paragraphs 4 and 5 of this Ministry's Letter No.V11026/8/89-ARMS dated 4th July, 1989 may be kept in view.
(3) License for carrying weapons beyond the jurisdiction of the license is issued in Form VII of Schedule III of Arms Rules, 1962. In the State of Jammu & Kashmir, the State Govt. are the licensing authority to issue such licence through out india or any specified part thereof. In other States, the District Magistrate/Sub-Divisional Magistrate specially empowered by the State Govt. are the licensing authorities to issue the same valid throughout India or any specified part thereof.
(4) In absence of any Arms declaration a particular District or State or where particular item of arms or ammunition which the licensee is authorized to possess is not available with local dealers, a license holder can effect purchase of the licensed weapon from outside the State/District for which the license is valid by obtaining a carry permit in Form-VII.
(5) Sub-rule (3) and (4) of rule 62 of Arms Rules, 1962 may please be read in this context. Under these Statutory provisions it is mandatory for the license holders to register there licences with the local issuing authority when they change their residence.

3. State Governments/U.T. Administrations are requested that these instructions may kindly be brought to the notice of their field agencies so that the license holder may not have any difficulty in the grant/renewal and carrying of firearms, etc.

(GOI/MHA Letter No. IV-110264/89/- Arms (Part III), dated 25.10.189 to all State Governments/U.T. Administrations)

[Risala]

Many state govts esp in the North East...Arunachal,Mizoram & Nagaland and J&K have issued licences in the past in contravention of the guide lines laid down by the GOI...In quite a few places up North licences issued from some of these states to people not belonging to those states are looked upon with suspicion by the authorities....I have personally seen an All India licence issued to a person residing in Delhi even before the indl bought the fire arm...refer para 4 of the letter quoted above...

[cottage cheese]

Many state govts esp in the North East...Arunachal,Mizoram & Nagaland and J&K have issued licences in the past in contravention of the guide lines laid down by the GOI...In quite a few places up North licences issued from some of these states to people not belonging to those states are looked upon with suspicion by the authorities....I have personally seen an All India licence issued to a person residing in Delhi even before the indl bought the fire arm...refer para 4 of the letter quoted above...

Very true Sanjay,

Often its just out of plain ignorance and misunderstanding of the rules, though on occasion with mala fide intention.
It came as a surprise to many of the silly babus here that all-India licenses were subject to MHA approval.

Some still cant understand the fuss about PB's NPBs...

There was a severe clamp down last year with regard to Nagaland licenses. I remember it was posted here. about 15000 licenses were canceled or suspended pending investigation. The investigation is still on. Since then, they've pulled their act together and have computerized the licensing system and all licenses (NPB) are issued only after approval from the Home secretary. Generally speaking any licenses issued from late 2008 onwards can be regarded as 'clean'...though the stigma lingers. Legitimate license holders from the NE often have trouble getting cooperation from dealers in the rest of the country.

You will not believe the incredible stupidity of some of the babus this side.

One claimed that a licensee can purchase a gun only from a dealer... never individual to individual.

Why, some days back an acquaintance of mine came complaining that on applying for an NPB license, the DC sternly demanded proof that he had assets in excess of 2 crores...! A clear contravention of Section 14 (2) of the Arms Act. I've impressed on my friend not to take it lying down and to ensure that the error is brought to notice via RTI or court.

Most don't know the difference between a restriction and a ban.

regards,
cc

[nagarifle]

'Legitimate license holders from the NE often have trouble getting cooperation from dealers in the rest of the country.'

tell me about it in some districts of Punjab the DC has banned any thing to with NE. unlawful if you ask me. against the arms act.

[Risala]

I am not surprised Naga....but then it seems that every state in India...interprets the arms act differently...I am sure that at some point in the future things will change for the better,they will perhaps come up with a national database of all the licenced fire arms in the country...this in my view should have happened a long time ago...since every district has online connectivity today...this would make it so much easier for the Gov and also the licencee

[nagarifle]

Sanjay
totally agree with the national database part. I also feel that a general guide line made by the MHA for all India should be made and declared, which should make it easy for a layman to understand.

i do believe that each state has its on version of the arms rules modified from the all India ones. unlike the all India one its hard to lay one hands on it. To see how much variation there is, as copies tend to be for office use only.

[cottage cheese]

II.14.G.S.R 282, dated the 15th February 1978 - In exercise of the powers conferred by section 41 read with section7 of the Arms Act 1959(54 of 1959), the Central Government being of the opinion that it is expedient in the public interest to do so, hereby exempts her Royal Highness Ashi Phuntso Chodden, Senior Royal Grand Mother of Bhutan, presently residing in Darjeeling, from the operation of section 10 of the said Act in so far as it relates to firearms and ammunition brought into India, namely,-

(1) One automatic Rifle Colt AR-15 cal 223, 556MM No.015522 made in U.S.A 9Colts P.F.A. Mfg.Co., Hartford Conn) with 100 live bullets,

(2) One automatic Pistol Browning F.No. 9MM, MKI No.4T905 made in Canada(H.P.INGLIS) with 60 live bullets,

(3) One automatic Pistol No.414526-S(Baby)- Cal 6M/M-35 by Fabrique national D.Arms DC Guerre Herstal Belgique Browning Patent Depose, with 25 rounds of bullets,

(4) One automatic Rifle Cal 223 serial no. 015439 Gin Colt AR-15 Mfg.Co. Hartford, Conn, U.S.A. with 100 round of bullets,

subject to the condition that the aforesaid firearms and ammunition shall not be transferred to anyone in India for consideration or otherwise.

(Ministry of Home Affairs, No.21/22/76-GPA-V) (Gazette of India, 1978, Part II, Section 3(i), Page 41)

[nagarifle]

well now you have read that the frangi community do get arms license including PB.

also the diplomatic community also have smiler benefits under section 41. must dash have to join the frangi office

[mundaire]

Even our own IFS officers are exempt from the provisions of Section 10 of the Act, hence do not require an import license to bring in a firearm...

[cottage cheese]

well now you have read that the frangi community do get arms license including PB.

also the diplomatic community also have smiler benefits under section 41. must dash have to join the frangi office

Yaar simply get your sons married off to the Bhutanese Royal family when they come of age... may prove to be more useful than remaining subjects to the Imperial Bureaucracy of Bharat ....

[nagarifle]

and i thought that we live in the largest demon chrasy in the world it not a case of equity for all but the case of being in the right job