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Section 35 CrPC: Powers of Judges and Magistrates Exercisable by Successors in Office

Section 35 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 provided continuity in judicial and magisterial functions when one Judge or Magistrate was succeeded in office by another. It allowed the successor to exercise the powers and perform the duties attached to the office, subject to the other provisions of the Code.

Law applicable before BNSS: This article explains Section 35 CrPC as it operated before the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 came into force on 1 July 2024. The CrPC has since been repealed subject to the savings in Section 531 BNSS. The corresponding current provision is Section 29 BNSS.

Text of Section 35 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973

35. Powers of Judges and Magistrates exercisable by their successors-in-office.

(1) Subject to the other provisions of this Code, the powers and duties of a Judge or Magistrate may be exercised or performed by his successor-in-office.

(2) When there is any doubt as to who is the successor-in-office of any Additional or Assistant Sessions Judge, the Sessions Judge shall determine by order in writing the Judge who shall, for the purposes of this Code or of any proceedings or order thereunder, be deemed to be the successor-in-office of such Additional or Assistant Sessions Judge.

(3) When there is any doubt as to who is the successor-in-office of any Magistrate, the Chief Judicial Magistrate, or the District Magistrate, as the case may be, shall determine by order in writing the Magistrate who shall, for the purpose of this Code or of any proceedings or order thereunder, be deemed to be the successor-in-office of such Magistrate.

Meaning and Purpose of Section 35 CrPC

The expression successor-in-office refers to the judicial or magisterial officer who lawfully succeeds to the relevant office. Section 35 was intended to prevent proceedings, powers and official duties from becoming ineffective merely because the individual officer holding the office changed.

The provision concerned continuity of the office. It did not create an unrestricted personal power in a succeeding officer. Sub-section (1) expressly made the successor's authority subject to the other provisions of the CrPC, so any specific statutory restriction governing a particular proceeding continued to apply.

How Section 35 Worked

General rule: a successor Judge or Magistrate could exercise the powers and perform the duties of the predecessor, subject to the Code.
Sessions Judges: where doubt existed regarding the successor to an Additional or Assistant Sessions Judge, the Sessions Judge had to decide the question by a written order.
Magistrates: where doubt existed regarding the successor to a Magistrate, the Chief Judicial Magistrate or District Magistrate, as applicable, had to identify the successor by a written order.
Proceedings and orders: the deemed successor identified under the provision could act for the purposes of the Code and proceedings or orders made under it.

Corresponding Provision Under BNSS

Section 29 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 now deals with powers of Judges and Magistrates exercisable by their successors in office. The basic rule remains substantially the same. One textual change is that Section 29(2) BNSS refers generally to doubt about who is the successor-in-office, whereas Section 35(2) CrPC specifically referred to the successor of an Additional or Assistant Sessions Judge.

CrPC position before 1 July 2024	BNSS position from 1 July 2024
Section 35 CrPC	Section 29 BNSS
Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973	Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023
Successor could exercise powers and perform duties, subject to the Code.	Successor may exercise powers and perform duties, subject to the Sanhita.

Repeal and Savings After 1 July 2024

Section 531 BNSS repealed the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 but contains savings for specified pending matters and for certain actions, powers, orders, rules, appointments and other matters under the repealed Code. Accordingly, whether CrPC or BNSS governs a particular matter can depend on the commencement and transitional provisions. For proceedings that were already pending immediately before BNSS commenced, Section 531 should be checked before applying the new provision.

Practical Importance

Section 35 supported institutional continuity. A transfer, retirement, posting or other change in the person occupying a judicial or magisterial office did not by itself prevent the lawful successor from carrying forward powers and duties that the statute attached to that office. Where the identity of the successor was uncertain, the Code supplied a formal written mechanism for resolving the doubt.

Related CrPC Provisions

For the surrounding scheme on conferment and exercise of powers, see Section 32 CrPC - Mode of conferring powers, Section 33 CrPC - Powers of officers appointed, Section 34 CrPC - Withdrawal of powers, and Section 36 CrPC - Powers of superior officers of police.

This page is an informational explanation of the statutory provision and should be read with the applicable text, amendments, savings provisions and judicial decisions relevant to the facts of a particular proceeding.