Legal Framework, Statutory Duties and Limits of Authority
What the exam tests
Legal framework, statutory duties and limits of authority-what a guard may and may not do.
Core rules and concepts
- PSARA 2005: private security agencies must be licensed; guards must be trained, verified and deployed under lawful instructions.
- No police powers: a guard cannot investigate, seize property or interrogate.
- Citizen's arrest: a private person may detain someone committing a cognizable offence in their presence and must hand them to police promptly; this is historically CrPC s.43 and now appears in the BNSS.
- Private defence: minimum force, only to repel an immediate threat; never punishment or revenge.
- Search and privacy: physical search needs authority, consent, a witness and same-gender practice for women; avoid unlawful confinement.
- Evidence: preserve CCTV, do not alter records and note witnesses.
Worked example
A shopper is seen concealing goods and walking past the till. Reasoning: if the offence is cognizable and in your presence, you may detain with minimum force, identify yourself, take the person to a safe office, inform police, preserve CCTV and avoid any search without proper authority. Beating or locking someone in a room without police contact risks criminal liability.
Traps that cost marks
- Claiming a guard can arrest like police.
- Using force after the threat has ended.
- Conducting a personal search without authority or a witness.