(1) Any such officer (being an officer superior in rank to a peon, helper or constable) to the departments of drugs control, excise, police or any other department of the Government as is empowered in this behalf by general or special order of the Government, if he has reason to believe from personal knowledge or information given by any person and taken down in writing that any controlled substance in respect of which an offence punishable under this Act has been committed or any document or other article which may furnish evidence of the commission of such offence is kept or concealed in any building, conveyance or enclosed place, may between sunrise and sunset –
(a) enter into and search any such building, conveyance or place;
(b) in case of resistance, break open any door and remove any obstacle to such entry;
(c) seize any drug or substance or any other article and any animal or conveyance which he has reason to believe to be liable for confiscation under this Act and any document or other article which he has reason to believe may furnish evidence of the commission of any offence punishable under this Act; and
(d) detain and search, and, if he thinks proper, arrest any person whom he has reason to believe to have committed any offence punishable under this Act:
Provided that if such officer has reason to believe that a search warrant or authorization cannot be obtained without affording, any opportunity for the concealment of evidence or facility for the escape of an offender, he may enter and search any building, conveyance or enclosed place at any time between sunset and sunrise after recording the grounds of his belief.
(2) Where an officer takes down any information in writing under subsection (1) or records grounds for his belief under the proviso thereto, he shall within seventy-two hours send a copy thereof to his immediate official superior.
Power of seizure 22. Any officer of any of the departments mentioned in Section 21 may – 10 | P a g e and arrest in public place
(a) seize in any public place or in transit, any controlled substance in respect of which he has reason to believe an offence punishable under this Act has been committed, and, along with such drug or substance, any animal or conveyance or article liable to confiscation under this Act, any document or other article which he has reason to believe an offence punishable under this Act has been committed, and, along with such drug or substance, any animal or conveyance or article liable to confiscation under this Act, any document or other article which he has reason to believe may furnish evidence fo the commission of an offence punishable under this Act;
(b) detain and search any person whom he has, reason to believe to have committed an offence punishable under this Act, and if such person has any controlled substance in his possession and such possession appease to him to be unlawful, arrest him and any other person in his company.
Explanation: For the purposes of this section, the expression “public place” includes any public conveyance, hotel, shop, or other place intended for use by, or accessible to, the public.
Power to stop and search conveyance
23. Any officer authorized under Section 21, may, if he has reason to suspect that any animal or conveyance is, or is about to be, used for the transport of any controlled substance in respect of which he suspects that any provision of this Act has been, or is being, or is about to be, contravened at any time stop such animal or conveyance and –
(a) rummage and search the conveyance or part thereof;
(b) examine and search any goods on the animal or in the conveyance;
(c) if it becomes necessary to stop the animal or the conveyance, he may use all lawful means for stopping it, and where such means fail, the animal or the conveyance may be fired upon.
Conditions under which search of persons shall be conducted