(a) use, manufacture, obtain, procure, sell, transfer, convert, repair, test or prove, or
(b) expose or offer for sale or transfer or have in his possession for sale, transfer, conversion, repair, test or proof, any firearms or any other arms of such class or description as may be prescribed or any ammunition unless he holds in this behalf a licence issued in accordance with the provisions of this Act and the rules made thereunder.
(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), a person may, without holding a licence in this behalf, sell or transfer any arms or ammunition which he lawfully possesses for his own private use to another person who is entitled by virtue of this Act, or any other law for the time being in force to have, or is not prohibited by this Act or such other law from having in his possession such arms or ammunition:
Provided that no firearm or ammunition in respect of which a licence is required under section 3 and no arms in respect of which a licence is required under section 4 shall be so sold or transferred by any person unless
(a) he has informed in writing the District Magistrate having jurisdiction or the officer in charge of the nearest police station of his intention to sell or transfer such firearms, ammunition or other arms and the name and address of the person to whom he intends to sell or transfer such firearms, ammunition or the other arms, and
(b) a period of not less than forty-five days has expired after the giving of such information.
Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 5
Section 5 of the Arms Act prohibits the manufacture, sale, transfer, repair, testing, or commercial dealing in any firearms or ammunition except under the authority of a valid statutory licence.
The provision is crafted with sweeping breadth to dismantle illicit arms manufacturing networks (illegal gun factories) and enforce stringent tracking of weapons from proof houses to retail gun shops.
Section 5 forms the statutory foundation for monitoring authorized gunsmiths and arms dealers. Any unauthorized alteration of a firearm—such as shortening a barrel, converting an air rifle into a firearm, or fabricating country-made pistols (katta)—amounts to illegal manufacturing under Section 5 and is prosecuted as a non-bailable offense.