The Prisoners (Attendance in Courts) Act, 1955

(1) This Act may be called the Prisoners (Attendance inCourts) Act, 1955. (2) It extends to the whole of India except the State of Jammu and Kashmir*. (3) It shall come into force on such date1as the Central Government may, by notification in theOfficial Gazette, appoint.

In this Act, (a) "confinement in a prison"references to confinement in a prison, by whatever form of words,include references to confinement or detention in a prison under any law providing for preventivedetention; (b) "prison" includes (i) any place which has been declared by the State Government, by general or special order,to be a subsidiary jail; and (ii) any reformatory, Borstal institution or other institution of a like nature; 1[(c) "State Government", in relation to a Union territory, means the Administrator thereof.]

(1)Any civil or criminal court may, if it thinks that the evidence of any person confined in any prison ismaterial in any matter pending before it, make an order in the form set forth in the First Schedule,directed to the officer in charge of the prison: Provided that no civil court shall make an order under this sub-section in respect of a person confinedin a prison situated outside the State in which the court is held. (2) Any criminal court may, if a charge of an offence against a person confined in any prison is madeor pending before it, make an order in the form set forth in the Second Schedule, directed to the officer incharge of the prison. (3) No order made under this section by a civil court which is subordinate to a district judge shallhave effect unless it is countersigned by the district judge; and no order made under this section by acriminal court which is inferior to the court of a magistrate of the first class shall have effect unless it iscountersigned by the district magistrate to whom that court is subordinate or within the local limits ofwhose jurisdiction that court is situate. (4) For the purposes of sub-section (3), a court of small causes outside a presidency town or the cityof Hyderabad shall be deemed to be subordinate to the district judge within the local limits of whosejurisdiction such court is situate.

(1) TheState Government may, having regard to the matters specified in sub-section (2), by general or specialorder, direct that any person or class of persons shall not be removed from the prison in which he or theymay be confined, and thereupon so long as any such order remains in force, the provisions of section 3shall not apply to such person or class of persons. (2) Before making an order under sub-section (1), the State Government shall have regard to thefollowing matters, namely: (a) the nature of the offence for which or the grounds on which the confinement has been orderedin respect of the person or class of persons; (b) the likelihood of the disturbance of public order if the person or class of persons is allowed tobe removed from the prison; (c) the public interest, generally.

Upon delivery of any order made under section 3 to the officer incharge of the prison in which the person named therein is confined, that officer shall cause him to betaken to the court in which his attendance is required, so as to be present in the court at the time of suchorder mentioned, and shall cause him to be detained in custody in or near the court until he has beenexamined or until the judge or presiding officer of the court authorises him to be taken back to the prisonin which he was confined.