Power to arrest without warrant for gaming and setting birds and animals to fight in public streets.- A Police officer may apprehend 1[and search] without warrant-
(a) any person found 2[gaming] 3[or reasonably suspected to be gaming], in any public street, 4[or thoroughfare, or in any place to which the public have or are permitted to have access] 5[or in any race-course] ;
(b) any person setting any birds or animals to fight in any public street, 6[or thoroughfare, or in any place to which the public have or are permitted to have access] ;
(c) any person there present aiding and abetting such public fighting of birds and animals.
Any such person shall, on conviction, 7[be punished both with fine which may extend to three hundred rupees and with imprisonment], which may extend to 8[three months] 9[and where such gaming consists of wagering or betting or of any such transaction as is referred to in the definition of gaming given in section 3, any such person so found gaming shall, on conviction, be 10[punishable] in the manner and to the extent referred to in section 4, and all moneys found with such person shall be forfeited].
Seizer and destruction of instruments found.- And such Police-officer may seize all birds and animals and 11[things reasonably suspected to be instruments of gaming] found in such public street, 12[thoroughfare, 13[place or race-course]] or on 14[or about] the person of those whom he shall so arrest, and the Magistrate may, on conviction of the offender, order such instruments to be forthwith destroyed, and such birds and animals to be sold and the proceeds forfeited. 15[When any thing has been found on or about any person and a Court is satisfied that the Police-officer had reasonable grounds for suspecting that such thing was an instrument of gaming, such circumstance shall, until the contrary is proved, be evidence that such thing was an instrument of gaming and that the person on or about whom the thing was found was present for the purpose of gaming].
(a) any person found 2[gaming] 3[or reasonably suspected to be gaming], in any public street, 4[or thoroughfare, or in any place to which the public have or are permitted to have access] 5[or in any race-course] ;
(b) any person setting any birds or animals to fight in any public street, 6[or thoroughfare, or in any place to which the public have or are permitted to have access] ;
(c) any person there present aiding and abetting such public fighting of birds and animals.
Any such person shall, on conviction, 7[be punished both with fine which may extend to three hundred rupees and with imprisonment], which may extend to 8[three months] 9[and where such gaming consists of wagering or betting or of any such transaction as is referred to in the definition of gaming given in section 3, any such person so found gaming shall, on conviction, be 10[punishable] in the manner and to the extent referred to in section 4, and all moneys found with such person shall be forfeited].
Seizer and destruction of instruments found.- And such Police-officer may seize all birds and animals and 11[things reasonably suspected to be instruments of gaming] found in such public street, 12[thoroughfare, 13[place or race-course]] or on 14[or about] the person of those whom he shall so arrest, and the Magistrate may, on conviction of the offender, order such instruments to be forthwith destroyed, and such birds and animals to be sold and the proceeds forfeited. 15[When any thing has been found on or about any person and a Court is satisfied that the Police-officer had reasonable grounds for suspecting that such thing was an instrument of gaming, such circumstance shall, until the contrary is proved, be evidence that such thing was an instrument of gaming and that the person on or about whom the thing was found was present for the purpose of gaming].
Source footnotes
1. The words "and search" were inserted by s. 9 (1) of Bom. 1 of 1936.2. This word was substituted for the words "paying for money or other valuable thing with cards, dice, counters or other instruments of gaming used in playing any game, not being a game of mere skill" by s. 7 of the Bombay Prevention of Gambling (Amendment) Act, 1919 (Bom. 6 of 1919).
3. The words "or reasonably suspected to be gaming" were inserted by Bom. 1 of 1936, s. 9(2).
4. These words were substituted for the words "place or thoroughfare" by Schedule 1, Part-II, Serial No. 14 of the Bombay Repealing and Amending Act, 1910 (Bom. 1 of 1910).
5. These words were added by s. 4 of the Bombay Prevention of Gambling (Amendment) Act, 1922 (Bom. 5 of 1922).
6. These words were substituted for the words "place or thoroughfare" by Schedule 1, Part-II, Serial No. 14 of the Bombay Repealing and Amending Act, 1910 (Bom. 1 of 1910). 7. These words were substituted for the words "be punishable with fine which may extend to three hundred rupees, or with imprisonment" by Mah. 20 of 1975, s. 4.
8. The words "three months" were substituted for the words "one month" by Bom. 1 of 1966, s. 9 (5).
9. These words were added by s. 4 of the Bombay Prevention of Gambling (Amendment) Act, 1922 (Bom. 5 of 1922).
10. The word "punishable" was substituted for the word "punished" by Bom. 1 of 1936, s. 9(3).
11. These words were substituted for the words "instruments of gaming" by Bom. 1 of 1936, s. 9(6).
12. These words were substituted for the words "place or thoroughfare" by Schedule 1, Part II, Serial No. 14 of the Bombay Repealing and Amending Act, 1910 (Bom. 1 of 1910).
13. These words were substituted for the words "or place" by s. 4 of the Bombay Prevention of Gambling (Amendment) Act, 1922 (Bom. 5 of 1922).
14. The words "or about" were inserted by Bom. 1 of 1936, s. 9(6).
15. This paragraph was added by Bom. 1 of 1936, s. 9(7).
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More sections of this act
Section 1 · Short title, Extent.Section 2 · Repealed.Section 3 · "Gaming" defined. "Gaming" defined. "Instruments of gaming" defined. "Common gaming-house" defined. "Place" defined.Section 4 · Keeping common gaming-house.Section 5 · Gaming in common gaming-houses.Section 6 · Entry, search, etc., by Police officers in gaming-houses.Section 6(A) · Punishment for giving false names and addresses.Section 7 · Presumptive proof of keeping or gaming in common gaming-house.India Code, Government of India. Text fetched 22 Oct 2026. Check the linked official text and subsequent notifications when applying a provision.