Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023
Section 10
Chief Judicial Magistrate and Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, etc
(1) In every district, the High Court shall appoint a Judicial Magistrate of the first class to be the Chief Judicial Magistrate.
(2) The High Court may appoint any Judicial Magistrate of the first class to be an Additional Chief Judicial magistrate, and such Magistrate shall have all or any of the powers of a Chief Judicial Magistrate under this Sanhita or under any other law for the time being in force as the High Court may direct.
(3) The High Court may designate any Judicial Magistrate of the first class in any sub-division as the Sub-divisional Judicial Magistrate and relieve him of the responsibilities specified in this section as occasion requires.
(4) Subject to the general control of the Chief Judicial Magistrate, every Sub-divisional Judicial Magistrate shall also have and exercise, such powers of supervision and control over the work of the Judicial Magistrates (other than Additional Chief Judicial Magistrates) in the sub-division as the High Court may, by general or special order, specify in this behalf.
Why this exists
The provision continues a long-standing structure (earlier found in Section 12 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973) for organizing the judicial magistracy at the district and sub-division level. It ensures a clear administrative hierarchy—Chief Judicial Magistrate at the top, Additional Chief Judicial Magistrates assisting, and Sub-divisional Judicial Magistrates supervising local magistrates—so that judicial work is properly distributed, supervised, and accountable, while keeping magistrates under High Court control rather than executive control, consistent with the separation of judiciary from the executive.
Common misconceptions
- Myth: The Chief Judicial Magistrate is elected or chosen by the government.
Fact: The Chief Judicial Magistrate and related magistrates are appointed only by the High Court, not the executive government. - Myth: A Sub-divisional Judicial Magistrate has unlimited independent power over all magistrates.
Fact: Their supervisory power is subject to the overall control of the Chief Judicial Magistrate and does not extend to Additional Chief Judicial Magistrates.