Kerala act 031 of 1961 : Kerala Borstal Schools Act, 1961

718

THE

KERALA BORSTAL SCHOOiS 'ACT 1961 ^'

(ACT ^31OF

1961)

CONTENTS

Pmmble. Snlmm. +mN—

asu-

my

10

ll

12

13

14

I5

16

17

IE

20

21

22

23

24

PART ^I

PRELIMINARY

SlIDlI title and

application. Definitions. Establishment of

borstal schools. Application ^ofthePrisons ^Actsandthe

Prisoners Acts.

PART II

Commit"! to Borstal

School:

Power of can]!

to

pass order

of detention in

borstal school' Preliminary inquiry ^and

finding ^asto

age^of

adolescent offender. Limitation ^on

powers conferred

by

section

5.

Power of

Inspector-Genelal

to transfer

prisoners

to

bomal school. Government ^to

determine

the

borslal school to which ad- olescent offender shall be sent. Removal from one

borstal school to

another. Reception ^of

offenders^fromand

transfer ^of

offenders^to other States in India. Transfei ^of

incorrigiblcs, etc.,

to

pnsonl.

PART 111

Release on licence

or

parole Power to

release

on

l1Ccnce. Form ^oflicence. Revocation of

licence. Escape ^andforfeiture ^of

licence. Release ^on

parole. Absence undel licence or on

parole

to: be counted toward:

period ^ofdetention. Power ^of

InschIDr-Gencml

to

allow inmates to

receive instruction or

training.

PART IV

Control and

management

of bar-ell

schools Management ^ofborstal

schools. Constitution, powers^and

duties ^of

visiting

committeel. Classification of inmates. Punishment

for offences. Limitation of

hours ofwork

719

PART V

Appeal ^and

Revision

25

Appeal

and

revision.

PART V1

Miscellaneous

26

Mmimum

age-limit

of adolescents 1n

areas to which the Children Act:

have not been extended.

97

Power

01'

Government

to

discharge

inmates.

2111

Removal of

disqualification attachmg

to

conviction: {or offences.

29

Rules. '1')

Repeal. ACT 31 or

196]

THE 1115mm BORSTAL

SCHOOLS

ACT,

1961

1

An Art to

make

pmmmnfm

the establishment find

rzgulnlion of

(Junta!

:tlualx fry ^1}»due/111011^and

[muting

of

adolemnl

oflma'm. Fumble—Whereas 1t is

expedient

to

make

prov1sion

for the establishment and

regulation

ofbmstal schoals in the

State of

Kerala for the detention and

training

of adolescent offender» therein ;

BE 11

enacted in the

Twelfth Yeal

of

the

Republic

of India

as follows ^'-

PART ^I

Pleummmv

1. Sim! 1111: and

up [mum—(1)

Thu

Act may be called

the

Kerala Borstal

Schools

Act,

961

(2) ^TheGovcmment^may,by

notification^inthe

Gazette, ^ham lime ^to

time, apply

the whole⁰¹

any of the

provniom

of this Act to adalacent

offenders^or

any class thereof1n

any local area in the

State, from ^suchdateas

may^be

specified¹ⁿ

tilt:

notification,

and may cancel or

modify

such notificatmn.

2.

DtfiluliaILn—In

this

Act,

unless the context

otherwlse mqutrcs,—— (l)

"adolesccnt offender" means

any person^{whohasbeencon-} \'ictcd ^ofany offence

pumshable ^with

Imprtsonment ^or

who

havxng

been ordered to

give security

under section 118 of the Code ^of

Criminal P10- cedure, ¹⁸⁹⁸

(Central ^Act5

011898), ^has

failed ^{to do so andwhoat} the ^timeof such convicuon^orfailure^to

give security ^isnot

legs than l6 n01 more than 21

years

of

age

:

(2)

"burslal school"

means^a

correctwe mstitunon wherein adoles- cent

ofl'enden,

while detamed ¹ⁿ

pursuafite

of

th1s

Act,

are

g1ven such 1nduttrial or

agricultural training ^and

other instmction ^andare

subject. ed to such

d1sc1pl1nary

and moral influences

as. will

conduce to

their rrl'ormatwn and the pre\ cntion^of(:1me, 'Recewed the assent of the

President ^on27th

September, ¹⁹⁶¹and published ^{in the}

Gazette

Extraordinary

dated^3rd

Octabct

1961 .

o

/

7'20

(3) "Inspector-General"

means^the

Intpector-Genelalof

Prisons and includes any officer

appointed by

the

Government to

exercise

or perform ^{allor anyof the}powers ^orduties ^ofthe

InspeetObGeneral under this Act ^:

(4) "probation

officer" means^an

officer

appointed ^tobea

pro- bation

officer or

recognised

a; such under section 13

of the

Probation of

Offenders

Act,

1958

(Central

Act 20

of1958)

;

(5)

"State" means ^the

State^ofKcrala.

721

l

6.

Preliminary mqunj Eltdfflltlmg ^atla

age af

[MD/MM!!!

nflendn—Bclor'e passrng ^an

order

under section

5, ^thecourt shall enquire ^intotheageof the offender

and,

after

considering ^the

report

of the

probation

officer (Ind

taking

such

evidence,

if any, ^as

my be

deemed necessary, shall record A

finding

thereon

stating ^his

age ^as

nearly ^as

may be. 7'

Lmritaoon

on

[1mm curt/"marl

by ^when

5,—Airy person detained in a

horstal

school forfailuic to lurnrsli security

when ordctcd to d8 so under section¹¹⁸oltlre^Codeof

Criminal

Procedure, ^l898

(Central Act 5

oleQB),

shall^bereleased ^on

furnishing ^such

security ^oronthe passing ^ofanorder under sub-section ^{(1) ol~}section^{124of the} said

Code. 8' Power

aflmpctlm-Gmeml ^(a

limit ^a

primiicmtu

[7mm] rthaal

-—(l)

The Inspector-General ^may,SuchCl ^tothe

rules^made

by ^theGovernment in

that

behalf,

if

satisfied that any adolescent oH'crrdei

undergomg

rm- prisonmeirt ⁱⁿ

consequence ^ofasci'ttcncc

passed

aftl'i

the commence- ment of

this Act

might

wrth

advantage

be detained^1naborstal

school, direct that

such person

shall^be

lldl'lSlcll'Cd «from

prtsun ^toa

horstzl school,

there^toserve^thewhole^or

any par ^{t 0'the}

unexpncd portion ^ol his sentence:

Provided that no adolescent cvflendei

undergorng iirrpiisonmcnt lui

life,

shall be

transferred

to A borstal stliool Without the prevrons sanction of the

Government.

(2) ^Whenanadolescent

nl'lenrlt'i ^istransferred^toaboistal school under

sub-section

(1),

the

provrsions

of

this Act

shall

apply

to

such ofl'ender ^asif

he had been

originally

order ed ^to

bc detained in a

horstal school.

9

Government

In

dclemtme [Ire bmslal

JLIIUUI la whlr/I

adulment

Wm!"

shall ^I}:

renl.~Evei-y

adolescent oflcrtdcr

ordered

by

a

court to ht: sent to a borstal

school

shall

be

sent

to \ut h

borstal school as the Govern- ment

may, by

general

or

special

order, apporiit

[or

the

reception

of adolescent olTenders ^so

dealt ^wrth

by

such eonrt' Provided

that,

if

accommodation

in

a

borstal school is not rmch diately

avarlable ^{for such}

adolescent

oll'cndcr, ^hemay^bedetained ^"1a speeial ^{ward or such}other suitable Part^ofa

prison ^{as the}

Government may diiect,

until ^hecanhe ^{sentto a}

borstal sclronl. The

period

of detention so

undergone

shall be treated as

detention in a borslal schools

lUr

Rmmnlfmm

one baislul tel/mil [a

allol/IL'L—rrllc

inspector-General inuy, ^{at any}time,

order^aninmate^to

be removed from^one

horstal school to

another,

provrdcd

that the whole

period

at

his detention lll a boistal

school shnll^not

he

increased

by ^such

removal. ll.

It'ewptzan cfoflendm from

am!

[1111th of»

mdcu [a other

Stale:

in India

—~(l)

Tht: Government ma)

, by

general

or

special

order

notrfit'd in the

Gazette,

direct

that any spccrficd

borstal srliool in the State shall be available for the

reception

of adolescent offenders ⁱⁿ

respect

0t wliorrr

722

i an mder of detention ^iiia

liaistal

school 01 other

school ofa like nature has been

passed

by any

cuiiii ox

niagisirate

iii

any other State

in

India, and, ^theicupon,

piowsmn may^hemadefortheienioval ^{of the}adoles- cent ofl'endeis conccincd

accmdiiigly Pi OVidcd

that

the Goveiiimeiit shall not

piss

such an

cider With- out the consent ofthc

Government of the other

State

conceined. -

(2)

The Govciinnent may diiect .iny

inmate ofa boistal

school

"I the State ^tobetransferred^to

any boislal school or othei

school

of ^a like nature ⁱⁿ

any othei Stateⁱⁿ

India

1

Provided ^thatnosuch

tiaiislcr shall be made Without the

consent of the Government

of^the

other State concerned.

(3) ^TheGovexnment^may

consent ^{tothe ti}

ansfer ^toa.

bontal school

iii ^the

State;

ofa person detained in

any boistal

school or ntliet school ^{01 alike}natuicⁱⁿ

any other

State ⁱⁿ

India.

(4) ^Thr-pluVlflOnS ofthis^Actshall

apply ^{to any}

person^{who isic-} movcd or (lanifcd'cd ^toa

hotstal

school in the Slate iii

puisuaiicc ul \Ub-SECUOH

(l) ⁰¹sub-section

(3), ^asif

he had been

uiiginally

Dideicd lo be detained ^ina

beistal schoolⁱⁿ

the State. l2.

Transfer a/mcmrigibm,

£25.,

In

prison—When

a

person detained in a botstal school^is

icportcd

to the

Govetninent

by

the

Superintendent of such

school ^tobeincori

igihle ^{or tobe}exerCIsmg

a bad

influence ^on the othei

inmates of the

school.

the

GOVeinment may

commute the un- cnpned portion ^oltheteim

ofdcteiition^{to suchterm of}

imprisonment of either

description ^asthe

Goveinment may determine,

but in

no

case exceeding—-

(a) ^such

unexpired

portion, ^or

(b) ^themaximum

pcnod ^oi

impiisonmeiit

fixed^l0itlicofleiicc

O] the failuic

to

gch security,

as

the

case

may

lie,

or

(c) ^the

maximum

pciiod ^ol

imprisonment

which^thecouil^that ll ied

him had

authority

to awaid under

the Code ofCi

iniiiial

Pi nceduic

1898

(Central ^Act5of

1898),

\vliichevei is shone", PART Ill

Rowan: ON

LlCENCE 0R

Pimocc

13. Pm"^to"lean:^mi

Imam—(l) Subject

to

any

general

or

speCial diiections of ^the

Government,

the Ins

ector-General on

the recom mcndatiun ^of

the

visiting

committee^an

after

considering

the

report of ^the

probation

ofiicu'mzy, ^at

any time after

the

expiration

of six momhs ^fromthe commencement

of the term of

detention,

if

satisfied that there is^a

reasonable pi

obability

that the

initiate will

abstain from crime and

lead^a

useful

and

industrious

life,

by

licence permit him to be

discharged

from

the

borstal

school

on

condition that

he be

placed under ^thesupervtsiun ^or

authority

of any Government

officer,

0i

secu- lar

institution, ^or

pexson,

or

religious society

piofessing

the same

reli- giou ^as

the inmate,

namedⁱⁿ

the

licence,

who may be

Willing

to

take charge ^{of him.}

J

;3*1

(2) ^Alicence under ^this

section

shall^{be in}

force

until^{theterm for} which the

offender ^wasordered ^tobedetained has

expired,

unlesl sooner revoked ^or

forfeited. 14». Farm

af

[Mme—Every

licence

granted under section ¹³

shall be in such form^andshall contain such conditions ^as

the

Government may by

rules

duect.

15. Rawzalimi

nflt'cmm—Subiect ^to

any general ^or

special

directions at" the

Government, ^a

licence

granted

under section l3 may be revoked at

any time

by

the

inspector-General

and wheie ^a

licence has been^re- voked, ^theperson ^{to whomthe}

licence related shall return ^tothe borstal ichool ^{: ,}

ProVided that before

taking

action under this section the

Inspector- General thall consider the

report

of the

piobation

oflicer. l6.

Escape andfnrfeilmz L]

[truism—If any

inmate

escapes fr 7m ^2.

horetnl school ^orifany

inmate absent ^on

licence^{tom3heistal school removes himself from the supervision of the

society ^or

person

in whose

charge

he is

placed

or

fails,

after the

revocation of the

licence.

to

return from such

superVision

to

the

borstal

school,

a

police

officer not below

the rank ol'a

Sub-Inspectoi

of Police may, Without ordeis from

a

Magis- tiate

and Without warrant,

arrest him and take him

back

to

the borstal school, ^andhislicence shall ^beforfeited^With

effect ^{fromthedateof} his escape

or failure to

return,

as the case

may be.

17. Release

expander-(l)

The

Inspector—General 'may

tolease on parole any

inmate fromn borstal school^forsuch

period ^or

period- and

subject

to such

conditions

as

may be

determined

by

him either——

(a) ^{for the}purpose ofenabling ^theinmate^{to take}up ^{an em-} ployment ^ortoreceive instructions ^or

training; ^or

(b) ^insuch

other circumstances ^as

may^be

approved by ^him.

(2) ^Ifthe

Inspector-General ^is

satisfied^{that an}

inmate ^hasvrolated any of the conditions ^onwhich

he ^was

released ^on

parole,

he may, b

order,

recallhirn

to

the borstal school notwuhstandm that theY

3

time for which ^hewas

released has ^not

expired,

and

thereupon

he shall return ^to

the borstal school.

(3) Ifany

inmate fails ^to

return ^tothe

borstal school^when

recalled under

subsection

(2),

any

police

officer

not below

the rank of: Sub- Inspector ^ofPolice^may,Without orders^froma

Magistrate ^andWith- out

warrant,

arrest him and

take

him back to the boistal school.

[8.

Abram

under licence or an

pawl:

Io be taunted Millard:

period of

deten- lioii.~The ^time

during

which^aei-stm ^is

absent ^{from a}

busted school under ^a

licence^oron

parole shalrbe treated ^as

part

of the term of his detention in the

school,

provuleu'

that whcie ^that

person

has

failed to retuin to the school^onthe licence

being

forfeited^orrevoked^or

when recalled ^from

parole ^thetimewhich

elapses

after^hisfailure^so

to re- turn shall be excluded in

computing

the^term

during

which he

is to be detained ^{in the}

school.

19.

Pawerqflnsptrlar-Gmaml ^Inallow inmate: ^toreceive

lllflflu'llmll ^or training.—Notwtthstandiug anything

contained ^{in this Act, the}

Inspec- tor

General may, subject ^tosuch rules^as

may

be made

by

the

Gov- eriimcnl ⁱⁿ

that

behalf,

allow any

inmate of^aborstal school ^toreceive instructions or

training ⁱⁿ

any other institution without

being

released from thctbcnstal school.

3 4/4095

0

7225

PART IV

CONTROL AND

NIAhAGEMENT or

BORSTAL Sex-toms

20.

Manngzmm! nf

battlal

MIME—Subject

to

the orders

of

thc Inspectot-Gencral ^and

Subject ^alsoto

thexules^made

by

the Govern- ment, the control and

management

ol'cvery

borstztl school shall vest in a

Superintendent appointed

by

the

Govcmmcnt.

21

Conthluaou, paws

and dune:

af culling

commmm

—~(l) (a) Every VlSllmg

commutes

appointed

under

sub'secuon

(2)

of section ³shall consist ol' the

Sessxonsjudgc.

the

Distnct

Magtsu'atc

and the Dustrict Educatxonal Officer

of the

dtstrict m

whtch the

school IS situate and four non-officxal members

appointed

by

the

Government.

(b) ^Then0n hold

office^fora

pound ^of two

years but shall he

ehgtble

for

re-appemtment

on the exptry of that

penod.

(2) ^Itshall^bethe

duty

ofthe

wsttmg committee ^andtts

members~

(a) ^{to vmt the}school ctther

indivtdually ^m

COHCCHVCI)' ^onsuch OCCaaicns ^as

may^he{Red

by ^therules

made

under this Act

m that behalf, ^forthepurpom

ofcnsuung ^thattheprovtslons of this Act are duly gnen cfl'cct^to;

(b) ^{tomake such}

suggestions^forthetmprovcment^ofthe

training thercm as are consrdcred necessaty and to

tcport

to the

Government or to the

Inspector-General

from tune

to ttmc

any

matter

whtch,

tn thetr opimon,

should

receive attentttm ^and

annually ^ontheprogress ^of the

school;

(c) ^to

intervrew ^theInmates

numedtately

after then' amval ^and to make suggesttous,

if an , as to the

special ttammg whxch each should tccclvc,

(d) ^toconsxdcr

cases^of

release ^on

ltccnce under

sub-sectton

(l) of semen

l3,

and cases 01

release on

parole

unde:

sub-section

(l)

of semen

l7I

placed

before them

by

the

Supenntendcnt,

(e) ^to

COHSlch ^suchaeuon^as

may^be

necessary ^In

tegard ^tothe Inmate: whose term of detention ^ts

about to

cxpue, and (t') ^toconstdcr^andtepmt ^tothe

Government Cases^ofmmatcs who are fit to be

dtschargcd

under scctmn 27' '

(5)

Subject ^tosuchrules ^{a: maybe made}

by ^the

Government^m that

behalf, every membct ^{of the}

vtsmng

commtttce :ha'l be enmled to call for mformatton from the

Supcnntendent,

to cxamme

the records of ^the

school ^{andtotakesuch}other acuon^ashe deems necessary

{or the

due

discharge

of hts duhs,

27.

Clam/nutter:

gunman—(l)

The mntaICS of a

bolstal school shall ^bedxvtded

by ^the

Supermtendent

accoxdmg

to [hell

mdustry

and good

conduct ^Intothree

grades, namely.—

(1) ^the

urdmaty

grade.

(u) ^thestar

grade.

(m) special ^starw-ade.

725

(2) ^The

privrlcgcs ^{of each}

grade

shall ^be

111th ^thanthose ^ofthe grade preceding, ^ifany.

(3) Every

inmate

shall, ^on

reception ^{m a}horstal

school, ^be

placed' in

the

ordinary grade.

(4) ^The

Superintendent may promote ^or

reduce any

Inmate^from one

grade

to

anather

m

accordance

With the

proviuon:

of

sub—section

(5),

the

rules made

under this

Act and

the

general

instrucnons

ofvmtmg committee.

(5)

Promotions^andreductions shall^be

regulated by

close

personal observation of ^theinmates^andshall

depend spcmally ^ontheir

general behavroul , amenabxhty ^to

rlisc1p1ine

and

atlentmn^to

inatructions,^both literacy ^andindustrialt

25.

Punxrhmmlfitr a]enm.——(l)

The

punishments

which may be inflicted on

an inmate ofa borstal school for offences

specified ⁱⁿ

the Prisons

Act,

1894

(Central

Act

9 of

189:) ^or

the

Travancore-Coehln Prisons Act, ¹⁹⁵⁰

(Act

XVIII^of

1930), ^asthecase

may be, ^andthe rules made

thereunder,

shall he

in

the

following

forms and

no

other:— (|)

formal warning, (ii)

extra

drill, (iii)

deprivation ^{ofanyof the}

privileges ^ofthe

grade, (iv)

reductionⁱⁿ

grade.

(2) ^No

punishment

shall^beawarded^to

any inmate

by any offictal of the

school

except

the

Superintendent

or In his

absence the otficral exerctsmg his functions.

24. Ltmilnlwn

of

ham:

af

work.~No inmate ^ofa borstal school shall be made to work for more than srx hours ^a

day:

Provrded ^thatextra

dnll

awarded

as^a

punishment

under sub- section

(1)

of section

23

shall not be

deemed,

for the purposes of this scction, ^tobework.

PART ^V

Apps/u. AND

REVISION

25.

Appeal

and "mammiFor purposes of

appeal

and revmon under the Code of Criminal

Procedure,

1898

(Central ^Act5

of1898),

an order of detention under section 5 of ^II":Actshall^be

deemed to be ^a sentence of

Imprisonment

for

the same

pcnod. Any person afi'ectcd

by ^anorder

oflhc

Inspector-General

under this Act

may

appeal ^tothe

Government whose orders shall be final.

PART VI

MlSCELLANEOUE

2 6. Mmtmum

age-11ml!

Qfadalaunls ^mam:to

which^Ill:CAzIdmt ,1th have not^banextended—In

areasⁱⁿwhich

the provmons of the Madras Children

Aer, ¹⁹²⁰

(Act ^IVof

1920), ^ortheCochin

Clnldren ^Act. XXXVI of^{1111 orthe}Travancore Children

Act, ¹¹²⁰

(Act

XXXII ^of 1120), ^{are not in}

force, ^the

figures ^"16"

726

27. Pawn

(3/

Government ^to

dot/mtg

z:zmala.t.-The Government may at

any

time order the

discharge

of ^an

inmate of any borstal school either

absolutely ^or

Subject ^to

such

conditions ^as

they may think fit.

28.

Removal

ofdtrqwzhftmlzou allarltmg ^Ivconviction: for affiznczr.~'l"he convrctton of ^an

adolescent offender shall ^not

be

regarded ^asa

convuc- tion for the

purposes ofany dbquallficflflon attachtng

to

a

ootwtetton

y for any offence. l

29.

Rule:

——(1)

The

Government may, after

previous

publication, make rules^forthepurpose^ofcarrying ^intocfl'ect

the

provtsions ^01'this Act. ^.

(2) ^In

particular, ^and

without

prejudice ^tothe

generality

ofthc forcgomg power,^Suchrules^may

prOthe ^for—

(a) ^the

appointment, powers^and

duties^ofoffictalsⁱⁿ

borstal schools;

(b) ^thetreatment, maintenance, cducatron,

industrial^or agricultural

training^andcontrol^oftheinmates^ofhorstal

schools,

(c) ^the

grant ^of

permission ^totheinmates^of

bound schools^to absent themselves ^forshont

periods, (d)

Visits^toandcommunications^Withtheinmates

ol'vborstal schools,

(e) ^thetemporary detention ^ofadolescent

offenders until arrangements ^canbemadefor

sending ^themtobotstal

schools; (1') ^thetransfer^of

adolescent oflcnders^froma

prison ^toa borSIal

school

by ^the

Inspector-General;

(g) ^{theform of, andthe}condttions under

which,

ltcences may be

granted ^,

(h) ^the

period ^forwhich ^{and the}

conditions

subject ^towhich an inmate

may be allowed to receive instructions and

training

under section

19;

(I) ^thecontrol ^and

management ^ofhorstal

schools,

(j) ^thematters

subject ^towhtch mformatton^mayhecalled^for from

the

Superintendent

and the records

of

the school may be examined by ^themembers ^{of the}

Vistting

committee;

(k) ^thepowers^andduties^of

probation

officers under (ills^Act nd

the

submission ^of

reports by

them;

(1) ^anyother matter which^{isto be, or maybe,}prescribed.

(3) ^Allrules ^madeunder^{this Act}shall^{belaidfornotlessthan} fourteen

days

before the

Legislative Assembly ^{as soonas}

may be

after they ^are

made, ^andshall^be

subject ^tosuch

modifications^{as the}

Legis- lative

Assembly may make

during

the sessionⁱⁿwhich

they ^{areso land} or the session

immediately followmg, ^.

30.

Repeal. ^TheMadras

Borstal Schools

Act, 1925(Act ^Vof

1925).

as in force in the Malabar district referred^toin

sub-sect.on

(2)

of

section 5 o the State:

Reorganisation

Act,

1956

(Central

Act

37 of

1956)

and the Travancore Borstal Schools

Act, ¹¹²⁰

(Act

XXXI of

1120),

are hereby repealed.