Illegal firearms by kanishq dhas

     In the Indian society violence is very likely to exist if the laws weren’t strict enough. Laws against assault, battery, murder, attempt to murder, rape any such violent acts that could cause physical harm has a strict counter, thus keeping the balance between peace and chaos. The Arms Act, 1959 was enacted by the Indian Parliament with the sole purpose of consolidating and amending the laws relating to arms and ammunition. This was the need of the hour in order to curb the menace caused by individuals holding illegal weapons which could be potentially used to perpetrate violence in society through criminal activities. The Act aims to be as extensive as possible to cover all aspects relating to the acquisition, possession, manufacture, sale, import, export and transport of arms and ammunition as stated explicitly in Chapter II of the same. Further, Chapter IV of the Act elaborates upon the powers and procedures exercisable by the government and other officials in regulating the use and possession of arms and ammunition in India including provisions for arrest, search, seizure and detention orders.

     The arms act was first seen on the Indian subcontinent after the Sepoy mutiny of 1857 where the British had forced the Indian recruits of the British army called Sepoys, to bite down the cover of the cartridge to load the gun which was made from cow and pig’s lard, which was an insult to their Indian subparts and to let them know their place. Soon after the British found out just how quickly the Indians would drop their differences aside to rise up and rebel against their oppressors and after the mutiny of 1857 they brought down a new law under which only those people could own a firearm who were allowed a license and were serving for the British army. This Act further regulated the manufacture, sale, possession and carrying of firearms and was implemented during the tenure of the then Viceroy of India, Lord Lytton. 

    The hypocrisy of this Act was evident as Europeans were conveniently exempted from the provisions of the same while strict penalties and punishments were put forward for Indians if they were found owning any type of weapon. After independence, the Government of India passed the Indian Arms Act, 1959 which recognised the necessity for certain law-abiding citizens to possess and use firearms for the purposes of sports, crop protection and self-defence. This Act was followed by the Arms Rules of 1962. 

    Section 2(1)(h) of the Act contains a list of ‘prohibited ammunition’ which includes any ammunition containing any noxious liquid, gas or any other such thing and includes rockets, bombs, grenades, shells, missiles and articles designed for torpedo service and submarine mining.  Further, the prohibited arms enumerated in Section 2(1)(i) of the act include adapted firearms that provide a continuous discharge of missiles on applying pressure to the trigger or until the magazine containing the missiles is empty as well as any weapons designed to discharge noxious liquids and gases. The list also includes artillery, anti-aircraft and anti-tank firearms. Section 7 of the act prohibits the possession, acquisition, manufacture or sale of the prohibited arms and ammunition as stated above. Section 9 of the act further prohibits the acquisition and possession, whether by sale or transfer of the firearms to young persons (those individuals who have not completed 21 years of age). Sections 24A and B of the act prohibit the possession of notified arms in disturbed areas and the carrying of notified arms in or through public places in disturbed areas respectively.

     Section 21 of the Act states that an individual is required to deposit the arms in his/her possession without any delay to the appropriate officer of a police station, in the event of his/her license getting expired, revoked or suspended such that further possession of the arms by the individual becomes unlawful. The quantum of punishment according to the Arms (Amendment) Bill, 2019 has been almost doubled as compared to the Arms Act of 1959. For example, the punishment under Section 25 (1AA) of the 1959 Act which dealt with the manufacturing, selling, repairing and possessing prohibited arms, was a minimum of seven years of imprisonment which could be extended to a maximum of 10 years. The new amendment, however, extends the minimum period of imprisonment to a period of 14 years and the maximum term can extend to imprisonment for life.