The Shoplifting Stop at the Showroom Door
You are the shift supervisor at a licensed private security agency deployed at a two-floor garment showroom in Guwahati. At 18:40 on a Saturday sale day, the floor guard reports by radio that a customer has picked up three shirts with a total tag value of ₹3,200, entered a trial room, and walked past the billing counter without paying. The magnetic gate did not alarm because the security tags had been removed. The customer is now near the main door, arguing with a saleswoman and trying to leave. Two guards are on duty, no manager is on the floor, and about 70 shoppers are inside. The showroom's written policy allows staff to stop suspected shoplifters but says nothing about searching, handcuffing, or confining them. The customer is tall, aggressive, and says he is a lawyer and will sue for wrongful confinement. The police station is 1.5 km away and a PCR van usually takes 8–12 minutes.
1. Does the guard have legal authority to stop and detain the customer? Explain the basis, the limits, and the main legal risks.
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A private security guard has no police powers. The only arguable basis is the citizen's arrest provision (BNSS Section 35, formerly CrPC Section 43): a private person may arrest someone who, in his presence, commits a cognizable and non-bailable offence, and must hand him over to the police without unnecessary delay. Theft is cognizable and non-bailable, and the guard's own observation of concealment and passing the till is the key fact. Mere suspicion, someone else's report, or a past history is not enough. The power is not a licence to search, punish, demand money, or confine in a closed room. Legal risks include wrongful confinement, assault, defamation, and agency liability; PSARA licensing and store policy do not create police powers. The guard should use no more force than necessary, must not handcuff, must not search the person (a visual check of carried bags with consent is different), and must call police immediately. If the elements are not made out, release and record.
2. Set out the step-by-step stop, from the first radio call to handover at the police station, including positioning, witnesses, and evidence.
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- Acknowledge the radio; tell the floor guard not to grab or chase, and ask the saleswoman to step back and note her name. 2) Send the second guard to cover the door and call the control room; one guard stays with CCTV. 3) Approach from the side, identify yourself, show ID, and say politely: 'Sir, I need to check an unpaid item; please come to the office near the door.' Keep 1.5–2 m distance and an open exit. 4) If he agrees, use the glass office with the door open, two staff present, no physical search, no handcuffs. 5) Call police, record the time, and preserve the shirts, tags, bill, and CCTV clip. 6) If he refuses, do not block or tackle; note description, vehicle, direction, and call PCR. 7) Handover: written complaint, articles, witness names, and police acknowledgement. 8) Log any force used and inform the agency supervisor.
3. The customer offers to pay ₹3,200 and leave. What do you do? What changes if he pushes past you?
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Do not accept money as a settlement. Theft is an offence against the state, not a private debt; a guard cannot compound it, set a fine, or agree to 'no police' in exchange for payment. Tell him: 'I cannot accept payment or decide the case; the police will record it.' If the store later chooses a civil settlement, that is for the manager or legal team after police procedure, not for you at the door. If he pushes past, do not tackle, strike, or grab his throat or clothes. Step aside, keep your hands visible, call out to witnesses, note direction and vehicle number, and inform PCR and the control room. Minimum restraint to prevent escape is lawful only if it is necessary and proportionate; the safety of shoppers and staff comes first. Preserve CCTV before it overwrites, and write an incident report the same day.