The KERALA HOME GUARDS ACT, 1960

THE KERALA HOME GUARDS ACT, 1960 
CONTENTS 
Sections: 
1. Short title, extent and commencement.
2. Definitions. 
3.Constitution of Home Guards and appointment of 
Commandant-General and Commandant.
4. Appointment of members.
5. Functions and duties of members.
6. Powers, protection and control.
7. Control by Officers of Police Force.
8. Home Guards not to resign without notice.
9. Certificate, arms, etc., to be delivered up by person ceasing to be member. 
10. Punishment of members for neglect of duty, etc.
11. Penalties.
12. Disciplinary action against Commandant or the Commandant-General.
13. Power of Government to make rules.
14. Officers and members of Home Guards to be public servants.
15. Officers and members of Home Guards not disqualified from elections to
the Legislative Assembly or Local Authorities.
16. Repeal.
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ACT 16 OF 1960
THE KERALA HOME GUARDS ACT, 1960*
An Act to provide for the constitution of Home Guards in the State of Kerala. 
WHEREAS it is expedient to provide a volunteer organisation for use in
emergencies and for other purposes in the State of Kerala;
BE it enacted in the Eleventh Year of the Republic of India as follows:— 
1. Short title, extent and commencement. —(1) This Act may be called the
Kerala Home Guards Act, 1960.
(2) It extends to the whole of the State of Kerala.
(2) It shall come into force at once.
2. Definitions.—  In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "Home Guard" means a person who is appointed as a Home Guard
under this Act;
(b) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act.
3. Constitution  of  Home  Guards  and  appointment  of  Commandant-
General and Commandant .— (1) The Government may constitute a volunteer
body called the "Home Guards", the members of which shall discharge such
functions and duties in relation to the protection of persons, the security of
property, and the public safety as may be assigned to them in accordance with
the provisions of this Act and the rules made thereunder.
(2) The Government may appoint one or more Commandants for
the Home Guards constituted under sub-section (1).
(3) The Government may also appoint a Commandant-General of
the Home Guards in whom shall vest the general supervision and control of the
Home Guards in the State.
4.  Appointment  of  members.—(1)  Subject  to  the  approval  of  the
Commandant-General, the Commandant may appoint as members of the Home
Guards such number of persons, who are fit and willing to serve, as may from
time to time be determined by the Government and may appoint any such
*Received the assent of the Governor on the 19th day of August,1960 and published in the Kerala
Gazette Extraordinary  dated 20th August, 1960.
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member to any office of command in the Home Guards.
(2)  Notwithstanding  anything  contained  in  sub-section  (1)  the
Commandant-General may appoint any such member to any post under his
control.
(3) Every member of the Home Guards shall receive a certificate
of  appointment  which  shall  be  in  such  form  and  shall  be  issued  by  such
authority as may be prescribed.
5. Functions and duties of  members.—(1) The Commandant- General may
at  any  time  call  out  any  member  of  the  Home  Guards  for  training  or  to
discharge any of the functions or duties assigned to the Home Guards under
section 3.
(2) The Commandant may at any time call out a member of the
Home  Guards  for  training  or  to  discharge  any  of  the  functions  or  duties
assigned to the Home Guards within his jurisdiction in accordance with the
provisions of this Act and the rules made thereunder.
6. Powers, protection and control.— (1) A member of the Home Guards
when called out under section 5 shall have the same powers, privileges and
protection, as an officer of police appointed under the Police Act for the time
being in force.
(2) No prosecution shall be instituted against a member of the
Home Guards in respect of anything done or purporting to be done by him in
the exercise of the powers or the discharge of his functions or duties as such
member except with the previous sanction of the Commandant-General.
7.  Control  by  Officers of Police  Force.— The  members of the Home
Guards when called out under section 5 in aid of the police force, shall be under
the control of the officers of the police force in such manner and to such extent
as may be prescribed.
8. Home Guards not to resign without notice .— A member of the Home
Guards may, if he so desires, resign his membership thereof upon giving not
less than one month's notice to the Commandant within whose jurisdiction he is
serving.
9. Certificate,  arms,  etc.,  to  be  delivered up by  person  ceasing  to be
member.— (1) Every person who for any reason ceases to be a member of the
Home Guards, shall forthwith deliver up to the Commandant or to such person
and at such place as the Commandant may direct his certificate of appointment
or of office and the arms,  accoutrements, clothing and other necessaries which
have been furnished to him as such member.
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(2)  Any  Magistrate,  and  for  special  reasons  which  shall  be
recorded in writing at the time, any police officer not below the rank of a
Deputy Superintendent of Police or Assistant Superintendent of Police, may
issue a warrant to search for and seize, wherever they may be found, any
certificate, arms, accoutrements, clothing or other necessaries not so delivered
up. Every warrant so issued shall be executed in accordance with the provisions
of  the  Code  of  Criminal  Procedure,  1898,  by  a  Police  Officer  or  if  the
Magistrate or the Police Officer issuing the warrant so directs, by any other
person.
(3) Nothing in this section shall be deemed to apply to any article
which under the orders of the Commandant-General has become the property
of the person to whom the same was furnished.
10. Punishment  of  members  for  neglect  of  duty,  etc. —  (1)  The
Commandant  may  suspend,  reduce  or  dismiss  or  fine  to  an  amount  not
exceeding fifty rupees, any member of the Home Guards, under his control, if
such member neglects or refuses to discharge his functions and duties as a
member of the Home Guards or to obey any lawful order or direction given to
him for the performance of his functions and duties or is guilty of any breach of
discipline  or  misconduct.  The  Commandant-General  shall  have  the  like
authority in respect of any member of the Home Guards appointed to a post
under his control and may also dismiss any member of the Home Guards on the
ground of conduct which has led to his conviction on a criminal charge.
 (2)  Notwithstanding  anything  contained  in  this  Act,  the
Commandant shall have the authority to discharge any member of the Home
Guards at any time subject to such conditions as may be prescribed if in the
opinion  of  the  Commandant  the  services  of  such  member  are  no  longer
required. The Commandant-General shall have the like authority in respect of
any member of the Home Guards appointed to a post under his control.
(3) When the Commandant-General or the Commandant passes an
order suspending, reducing, dismissing or fining any member of the Home
Guards under this section, he shall record such order or cause the same to be
recorded together with the reasons therefor and a note of the inquiry made, in
writing, and no such order shall be passed by the Commandant-General or the
Commandant unless the person concerned is given an opportunity to be heard
in his defence.
(4) Any member of the Home Guards aggrieved by an order of the
Commandant may appeal against such order to the Commandant-General and
any such member aggrieved by an order of the Commandant-General may
appeal against such order to the Government, within thirty days of the date on
which he was served with notice of such order. The Commandant-General or
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the Government, as the case may be, may pass such order as he or they think
fit.
(5) The Commandant-General or the Government may at any time,
either suo motu or on application, call for and examine the record of any order
passed by the Commandant or Commandant-General, respectively, under this
section, for the purpose of satisfying himself or themselves as to the legality or
propriety  of  such  order  passed  by  the  Commandant  or  the  Commandant-
General, as the case may be, and may pass such order with reference thereto as
he or they think fit.
(6) Every order, if no appeal is made therefrom as herein before
provided, and every order passed in appeal or revision under this section, shall
be final.
(7) Any fine imposed under this section may be recovered in the
manner provided by the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898, for the recovery of
fines imposed by a Court, as if such fines were imposed by a Court.
(8) Any punishment inflicted on a member of the Home Guards
under this section shall be in addition to the penalty to which such member is
liable under section 11 or any other law for the time being in force.
11. Penalties.—(1) If any member of the Home Guards, on being called
out under section 5, without reasonable excuse neglects or refuses to obey such
order, or to discharge his functions as a member of the Home Guards or to obey
any lawful order or direction given to him for the performance of his duties, he
shall, on conviction, be punishable with simple imprisonment for a term which
may extend to three months or with fine which may extend to two hundred and
fifty rupees or with both.
(2) If any member of the Home Guards wilfully neglects or refuses
to deliver up his certificate of appointment or of office or any other article, in
accordance with the provisions of sub-section (1) of section 9, he shall, on
conviction, be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to one
month or with fine which may extend to one hundred rupees or with both.
(3) No proceedings shall be instituted under sub-section (1) or sub-
section (2) without the previous sanction of the Commandant.
(4) A Police  Officer may arrest without warrant any person who
commits an offence punishable under this section.
12. Disciplinary  action  against  Commandant  or  the  Commandant-
General.—The Government may, at any time, subject to such rules as may be
prescribed, dismiss, remove, suspend or reduce to a lower post or rank, any
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Commandant  or  the  Commandant-General  whom  they  think  remiss  or
negligent in the discharge of his duty or otherwise unfit for the same, and may
order the recovery from the pay or allowances of any such officer of the whole
or part of any pecuniary loss caused to the Government by his negligence or
breach of orders.
13. Power of Government to make rules .— (1) The Government may by
notification in the Gazette, make rules consistent with this Act for giving effect
to the purposes thereof.
(2) In particular and  without prejudice to the generality of the
foregoing power, such rules may provide for or regulate the following matters,
namely:—
(a) the exercise by any officer of the Home Guards of the
powers conferred  by  section  5  on  the  Commandant  and  the  Commandant-
General; 
(b) the exercise of control by officers of the police force
over members of the Home Guards when acting in aid of the police force; 
(c)  the  organisation,  appointment,  conditions  of  service,
functions,  discipline,  arms,  accoutrements  and  clothing  of  members  of  the
Home Guards and the manner in which they may be called out for service;
(d) the exercise by members of the Home Guards of any of
the powers exercisable under section 6 of this Act;
(e) the procedure to be followed in taking disciplinary action
by  the  Government  against  the  Commandants  or  the  Commandant-General
under section 12; and
(f) generally for giving effect to the provisions of this Act. 
(3) All the rules made under this section shall be laid for not less
than fourteen days before the Legislative Assembly as soon as possible after
they are made, and shall be subject to such modification as the Legislative
Assembly may make during the session in which they are so laid or the session
immediately following.
14.  Officers and members of Home Guards to be public servants. —The
officers and the members of the Home Guards acting under this Act shall be
deemed to be public servants within the meaning of section 21 of the Indian
Penal Code.
15.Officers and members of Home Guards not disqualified from elections
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to the Legislative Assembly or Local Authorities .— (1) A person shall not be
disqualified for being chosen as and for being a member of the Legislative
Assembly merely by reason of the fact that he is an officer or a member of the
Home Guards. 
(2) Notwithstanding anything contained to the contrary in any other
law for the time being in force, an officer or a member of the Home Guards
shall not be disqualified for being chosen as, and for being a member of any
Local Authority, merely by reason of the fact that he is an officer or a member
of the Home Guards.
16.Repeal.— The Madras Home Guards Act, 1948 (Act I of 1948) as in
force in Malabar district referred to in sub-section (2) of section 5 of the States
Reorganisation Act, 1956, is hereby repealed.
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