BNSS Section 91
Definition
Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023 Section 91 (successor to CrPC 1973 Section 91) lets a court or officer in charge of a police station issue a written order requiring production of any document or thing for investigation. The standard Indian instrument for compelling a domestic intermediary to produce data.
- Governing code
- Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023
- Predecessor
- CrPC 1973 Section 91 (renumbered BNSS Section 94)
- Issuing authority
- Court, or officer in charge of a police station
- Common digital use
- Compelling production of data from domestic intermediaries
Common questions
How does a Section 91 order differ from a search warrant?+
A Section 91 order compels the holder of a document or thing to produce it voluntarily on notice, without officers entering premises to search. A warrant authorises officers to enter and search a location themselves. Section 91 is used when the material's location and holder are already known and cooperation is expected.
Can a Section 91 order reach data held outside India?+
The order is a domestic instrument enforceable against entities within Indian jurisdiction, so a foreign-based service provider with no domestic presence is generally outside its reach; requests to such providers typically go through mutual legal assistance channels instead.
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