Section 44: Power to make rules

Arms Act • Official Statutory Text & Practice Guide

Statutory Regulation
Legal Standard
Competent Court / Tribunal
Act 1959

Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 44

Section 44 confers plenary rule-making power upon the Central Government to give effect to the provisions of the Arms Act, 1959, under which the comprehensive Arms Rules, 2016 were promulgated.

  • Comprehensive Rule-Making Authority: Central Government may, by notification, make rules regulating the manufacture, conversion, sale, import, export, transport, licensing, and verification of arms and ammunition across India.
  • Regulatory Architecture of Arms Rules, 2016: Governs licence applications (Form A1 to A4), categories of firearms, digital tracking on NDAL-ALIS, electronic records for dealers, safe storage regulations, and shooting range accreditations.
  • Mandatory Parliamentary Oversight: Section 44(3) mandates that every rule made under this section shall be laid before each House of Parliament for thirty days, subjecting subordinate legislation to strict parliamentary scrutiny.
Key Landmark Precedents:
  • State of U.P. v. Babu Ram Upadhya, AIR 1961 SC 751: The Supreme Court held that rules framed under statutory rule-making authority have statutory force and must be construed as part of the parent enactment itself.
  • Kunj Behari Lal Butail v. State of H.P. (2000) 3 SCC 40: The Supreme Court ruled that delegated rule-making power cannot be exercised to widen the parent statutory mandate or create substantive prohibitions not contemplated by the parent legislature.
Courtroom Practice & Strategic Litigation Guidance:

Whenever the executive seeks to impose an ultra vires restriction on licensees (such as demanding arbitrary medical tests not prescribed by statute or capping ammunition purchase below statutory limits), examine the parent provisions of Section 44 and the Arms Rules, 2016. If the departmental circular contradicts the Arms Rules, challenge it as ultra vires the parent statute via a Writ Petition under Article 226.