(1) The Commanding Officer shall afford every facility to the civil authority in detecting and apprehending persons serving on board whose arrest is required on any criminal charge, but he shall require any police officer, or other civil officer coming on board to search for or apprehend such persons, to produce his warrant or to show satisfactory evidence of the capacity in which he acts.
(2) No officer or sailor in Naval custody shall be claimed by the civil authorities for trial in a civil court, except on a direction of the nature of Habeas Corpus made by a High Court or under an order by the Government in this behalf.
(3) Such officer or sailor may, however, be surrendered voluntarily to answer a criminal charge if such charge is in respect of a civil offence more serious than the Naval Offence for which he is held in Naval custody;
Provided that the previous approval of the Administrative Authority concerned shall, wherever possible, be obtained before such a course is taken.
(4) Where a sailor has been arrested by any civil authority and afterwards admitted to bail, and the ship to which he belongs leaves for port before he is dealt with, he shall, if possible, be lent to a ship remaining at the port.
(5) A sailor who is left behind by ship because of proceedings against him in a civil court, whether he is subsequently acquitted or convicted, shall be liable for the whole cost of rejoining his ship, but special cases in which, owing to the movement of the ship, it is considered that this liability should not be enforced, may be represented to the Chief of the Naval Staff.
(6) Where conviction has resulted, the travelling expenses incurred by the sailor as well as the penalty enforced by the court shall be taken into account by the Captain in considering the imposition of Naval penalties and in similar circumstances abroad, the matter shall be reported to the Chief of the Naval Staff for decision whether the sailor should bear the whole or any part of the expense of rejoining his ship.
(7) The Commanding Officer shall permit writs and other legal processes to be served on board provided no serious inconvenience is thereby caused to the service.
(8) Then a subpoena witness summons requiring attendance at any court of justice is served upon a member of ship’s company, the Commanding Officer shall grant such leave as may be necessary, provided that the efficiency of the Service is not impaired there by and if, in the opinion of the Commanding Officer such leave cannot be granted without so impairing the efficiency of the service, he shall immediately report the circumstances, attaching all relevant documents, to the Administrative Authority for directions, and at the same time inform the officer of the court.
(9) Every Commanding Officer shall comply immediately with an application from the civil authority for an escort for a person under his command who is in civil custody.