Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 · Chapter IV: Manufacture, Sale and Distribution of Drugs and Cosmetics
Section 32: Cognizance of offences
[(1) No prosecution under this Chapter shall be instituted except by—
(a) an Inspector; or
(b) any gazetted officer of the Central Government or a State Government authorised in writing in this behalf by the Central Government or a State Government or by a general or special order made in this behalf by that Government; or
(c) the person aggrieved; or
(d) a recognised consumer association whether such person is a member of that association or not.
(2) Save as otherwise provided in this Act, no court inferior to that of a Court of Session shall try an offence punishable under this Chapter.]
(3) Nothing contained in this Chapter shall be deemed to prevent any person from being prosecuted under any other law for any act or omission which constitutes an offence against this Chapter.
Source: India Code (indiacode.gov.in), the consolidated text published by the Legislative Department, Government of India. Text as updated on India Code on 15 October 2026. Words in square brackets [ ] were inserted or substituted by later amending Acts, and *** marks words omitted by an amendment. The amendment footnotes are not reproduced here. Official text on India Code.
Supreme Court judgments citing the section 32
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Directorate of Revenue Intelligence v. Raj Kumar Arora & Ors.
Issue arose whether an offence u/s.8(c) of the NDPS Act could be said to have been made out when an accused “deals with” psychotropic substances mentioned in the Schedule to the NDPS Act but not figuring in Schedule I…
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Radhika Agarwal v. Union of India and Others
Challenge to the constitutional validity and the right of the authorized officers to arrest under the Customs Act, 1962 and the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (GST Act).
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M/S Jm Laboratories and Others v. State of Andhra Pradesh and Another
Non-speaking summoning order issued by Magistrate against the appellants. Petition under Section 482, CrPC filed by the appellants for quashing, dismissed by High Court. Issue as regards the legality of the summoning…
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Limited and Another v. The State of Andhra Pradesh
Whether selling of Nitrous Oxide I.P. by the appellant no. 1 company to the unlicensed accused No.3 firm which does not possess license under Form 20B of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940, was in contravention of…
- Maj Gen. V.K.Singh (Retd.) v. C.B.I