Page:Army Act, 1950 on Gazette of India.pdf/39

THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 179 to commute the punishment awarded by the sentence, if the finding had been valid, may substitute a now finding and pass a sentence for the offence specified IT involved in such finding:

Provided that no such substitution shall be made unless such finding could have been validly made by the court-martial on the charge and unless it appears that the court-martial must have been satisfied of the facts establishing the said offence.

(2) Where a sentence passed by a court-martial which has been confirmed, or which does not require confirmation, not being a sentence passed in pursuance of a new finding substituted under sub-section (1), is found for any reason to be invalid, the authority referred to in sub-section (1) may pass a valid sentence.

(3) The punishment awarded by a sentence passed under sub-section (1) or sub-section (2) shall not be higher in the scale of punishments than, or in excess of, the punishment awarded by, the sentence for which a new sentence is substituted under this section.

(4) Any finding substituted, or any sentence passed, under this section shall, for the purposes of this Act and the rules made thereunder, have effect as if it were a finding or sentence, as the case may be, of a court-martial.

164. Remedy against order, finding or sentence of court-martial.—(1) Any person subject to this Act who considers himself aggrieved by any order passed by any court-martial may present a petition to the officer or authority empowered to confirm any finding or sentence of such court-martial, and the confirming authority may take such steps as may be considered necessary to satisfy itself as to the correctness, legality or propriety of the order passed or as to the regularity of any proceeding to which the order relates.

(2) Any person subject to this Act who considers himself aggrieved by a finding or sentence of any court-martial which has been confirmed, may present a petition to the Central Government, the Commander-in-Chief or any prescribed officer superior in command to the one who confirmed such finding or sentence, and the Central Government, the Commander-in Chief or other officer, as the case may be, may pass such order thereon as it or he thinks fit.

165. Annulment of proceedings.—The Central Government, the Commander-in-Chief or any prescribed officer may annul the proceedings of any court-martial on the ground that they are illegal or unjust.

CHAPTER XIII EXECUTION OF SENTENCES
166. Form of sentence of death.—In awarding a sentence of death a court-martial shall, in its discretion, direct that the offender shall suffer death by being hanged by the neck until he be dead, or shall suffer death by being shot to death.

167. Commencement of sentence of transportation or Imprisonment.—Whenever any person is sentenced by a court-martial under this Act to transportation or imprisonment, the term of his sentence shall, whether it has been revised or not, be reckoned to commence on the day on which the original proceedings were signed by the presiding officer or, in the case of a summary court-martial by the court.