The Andhra Pradesh Departmental Inquiries (Enforcement of Attendance of witnesses and Production of Documents) Act, 1993.

THEANDHRA PRADESH DEPARTMENTAL INQUIRIES (ENFORCEMENT OF
ATTENDANCE OF WITNESSES AND PRODUCTION OF DOCUMENTS) ACT,
1993
ACT No. 7 OF 1993
ARRANGMENT OF SECTIONS
SECTIONS
1. Short title and extent.
2. Departmental inquiries to which the Act shall apply.
3. Definitions.
4. Authorisation of Inquiring  authority to exercise the  powers specified
in section 5.
5. Power to authorise inquiring authority to enforce attendance of
witnesses and production of documents.
6. Territorial limits in which powers specified in section 5 may be
exercised.
7. Power to make rules.
THEANDHRA PRADESH DEPARTMENTAL INQUIRIES (ENFORCEMENT OF
ATTENDANCE OF WITNESSES AND PRODUCTION OF DOCUMENTS) ACT,
1993.
ACT No. 7 OF 1993
 [2nd February, 1993]
AN ACT TO PROVIDE FOR THE ENFORCEMENT OF ATTENDANCE OF
WITNESSES AND PRODUCTION OF DOCUMENTS IN CERTAIN
DEPARTMENTAL INQUIRIES AND MATTERS CONNECTED
THEREWITH OR INCIDENTAL THERETO.
Be it enacted by the Legislative Assembly of the State of Andhra Pradesh
in the Forty-fourth Year of the Republic of India, as follows:-
 1. Short title and extent—(1) This Act may be called the Andhra Pradesh
Departmental Inquiries (Enforcement of Attendance of witnesses and
Production of Documents) Act, 1993.
 (2) It extends to the whole of the State of Andhra Pradesh.
2. Departmental inquiries to which the Act shall apply—The provisions of
this Act, shall apply to every Departmental inquiry made in relation to,
(a) officers and servants of High Court and Courts subordinate to
the High Court in the State;
(b) persons appointed to the judicial service of the State;
(c) persons appointed to public services or posts in connection with
the affairs of the State;
(d) persons, who having been appointed to any public service or
post in connection with the affairs of the State  are on deputation
to,-
(i) any local authority in the State:
(ii) any corporation (other than a local authority) established
by or under any law for the time being in force and owned or
controlled by the State Government;
(iii) any Government Company, within the meaning of
Section 617 of the Companies Act, 1956 (Central Act 1 of
1956) in which not less than fifty one percent of the paid-up
share capital is held by the State Government or any
company which is a subsidiary of such Government
Company;
(iv) any society registered under the Societies Registration
Act, 1860 (Central Act 21 of 1860) or the Andhra Pradesh
(Telangana Area) Public Societies Registration Act, 1350F(Act
I of 1350 F) in its application to the State of Andhra Pradesh
which is  subject to the control of the  State Government.
3. Definitions:—In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires —
(a)  “Competent Authority” means  the authority competent to
appoint the Inquiring  Authority;
(b)   “Departmental inquiry” means an inquiry under and in
accordance with—
(i) any law made by the State Legislature or any rule made
thereunder; or
(ii) any rule made under articles 229, 234, or the proviso to
article 309 or continued under article 313 of the
Constitution of India;
held into any allegation of lack of integrity against any
person to whom this Act applies;
(c) “Government” means the State Government of Andhra Pradesh;
(d) “Inquiring Authority” means an officer or authority appointed by
the competent authority to hold a departmental inquiry and
includes any officer or authority, who is empowered by or under
any law or rule for the time being in force to hold such inquiry;
(e) “lack of integrity” includes bribery or corruption and any mala-
fide act of omission or commission;
(f) “Notification” means notification published in the Andhra
Pradesh Gazette and the word “notified” shall be construed
accordingly;
(g) “Prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(h) “State” means the State of Andhra Pradesh.
4. Authorisation of Inquiring authority to exercise the powers specified
in Section 5 –Where in any departmental inquiry it is necessary to summon
as witnesses, or call for any document from, any person or a class or category
of persons, the Inquiring Authority may excise the power specified in section 5
in relation to any such person or a person within such class or category, at any
stage of the departmental inquiry, if he is authorised by order in writing in this
behalf by such officer not below the rank of Secretary to Government as the
State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette designate, and
different officers of such rank may be designated for different class or classes of
departmental inquiries or for different local areas of the State.
5. Power to authorise inquiring authority to enforce attendance of
witnesses and production of documents—(1) Every Inquiring Authority
authorised under section 4, (hereinafter referred to as the “authorised inquiring
authority”) shall have the same powers as are vested in a Civil Court under the
Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, (Central Act V of 1908.) while trying a suit in
respect of the following matters, namely:—
(a) the summoning and enforcing the attendance of any witness
and examining him on oath;
(b) requiring the discovery and production of any document or
other material which is producible as evidence;
(c) receiving evidence on affidavits;
(d)  requisitioning of any public record or copy thereof from any
court or office;
(e) issuing commission for the examination of witnesses or
documents;
(f) any such other matters as may be prescribed.
(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), the authorised
inquiring authority shall not compel,
(i) the Lokayukta or Upa-Lokayukta or any member of their
staff to appear before him to give any evidence relating to
any information obtained by them in the course of, or for the
purposes of, any investigation under the Andhra Pradesh
Lokyukta and Upa-Lokayukta Act, 1983 Act 11 of 1983 or to
produce evidence recorded or collected by them in
connection with such information;
(ii)  the Reserve Bank of India, the State Bank of India, and
subsidiary banks as defined in clause (k) of section 2 of the
State Bank of India (Subsidiary Banks) Act, 1959,Central Act
38 of 1959 any corresponding new bank constituted under
section 3 of the Banking Companies (Acquisition and
Transfer of Undertakings) Act, 1970 Central Act5 of 1970 or
the Banking Companies (Acquisition and Transfer of
Undertakings) Act, 1980 Central Act 40 of 1980 or a
Regional Rural Bank established under section 3 of the
Regional Rural Banks Act, 1976, Central Act 21 of 1976 the
Industrial Development Bank of India established under
section 3 of the Industrial Development Bank of India Act,
1964,  Central Act 18 of 1964 the Export-Import Bank of
India established under section 3 of the Export-Import Bank
Act, 1981, Central Act 28 of 1981 the National Bank for
Agriculture and Rural Development established under
section 3 of the National Bank for  Agriculture and Rural
Development Act, 1981, Central Act 61 of 1981,  The
Industrial Reconstruction Bank of India established under
section 3 of the Industrial Reconstruction Bank of India Act,
1984, Central Act 62 of 1984 the Industrial Credit and
Investment Corporation of India established under the
Indian Companies Act, 1913 the Industrial Finance
Corporation established under section 3 of the Industrial
Finance Corporation of India Act, 1948, Central Act 15 of
1948. State Financial Corporations established under the
State Financial Corporations Act, 1951, Central Act 63 of
1951. National Housing Bank established under section 3 of
the National Housing Bank Act, 1987, Central Act 53 of
1987, or any company or co-operative society- carrying on
the business of banking as defined in clause (b) of section 5
of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949, Central Act 10 of 1949
or any other public financial institution so notified by the
Central Government
(a) to produce any books of accounts or other documents which the
Reserve Bank of India, the State Bank of India, the subsidiary
bank of State Bank of India, any corresponding new bank, the
Regional Rural Bank, the Industrial Development Bank of India,
the  Export-Import Bank of India, the National Bank for
Agriculture and Rural Development, the Industrial Reconstruction
Bank of India, the Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of
India, the Industrial Finance Corporation of India, the State
Financial Corporations, the National Housing Bank, or any
company of Co-operative Society carrying on the business of
banking as defined in clause (b) of section 5 of the Banking
Regulation  Act, 1949 Central Act 10 of 1949, claims to be of a
confidential nature or any other public financial institution so
notified by the Central Government; or
(b) to make any such books or documents, a part of the record of
the proceedings of the departmental inquiry; or
(c) to give inspection of any such books or documents, if produced
to any party before it or to any other person.
(3) Every process issued by an authorised inquiring authority for the
attendance of any witness or for the production of any document shall be
served and executed through the District Judge within the local limits of whose
jurisdiction the witness or other person, on whom the process is to be served or
executed, voluntarily resides or carries on business or personally works for
gain and for the purpose of taking any action for the disobedience of any such
process, every such process shall be deemed to be a process issued by the
District Judge.
(4) Every authorised inquiring authority making any departmental
inquiry under this Act shall be deemed to be a Civil Court for the purposes of
sections 345 and 346 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (Central Act 2 of
1974).
6. Territorial limits in which powers specified in Section 5 may be
exercised—For the purpose of exercising the powers specified in section 5, the
territorial jurisdiction of every authorised inquiring authority shall extend to
the Whole of the State of Andhra Pradesh.
7. Power to make rules—(1) The Government may, by notification, make rules
to carry out all or any of the purposes of the Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall immediately after it is made, be
laid before the Legislative Assembly of the State if it is in session and if it is not
in session, in the session immediately following for a total period of fourteen
days which may be comprised in one session or in two successive sessions, and
if, before the expiration of the session in which it is so laid or the session
immediately following the Legislative Assembly agrees in making any
modification in the rule or in the annulment of the rule, the rule shall, from the
date on which modification or annulment is notified, have effect only in such
modified form or shall stand annulled, as the case may be; so, however, that
any such modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity
of any thing previously done under that rule.

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