Customs Act, 1962 › Chapter XIII — Searches, seizure and arrest

Section 102. Persons to be searched may require to be taken before gazetted officer of customs or magistrate

Customs Act, 1962

Bare Act

Persons to be searched may require to be taken before gazetted officer of customs or magistrate. —

(1) When any officer of customs is about to search any person under the provisions of section 100 or section 101, the officer of customs shall, if such person so requires, take him without unnecessary delay to the nearest gazetted officer of customs or magistrate.

(2) If such requisition is made, the officer of customs may detain the person making it until he can bring him before the gazetted officer of customs or the magistrate.

(3) The gazetted officer of customs or the magistrate before whom any such person is brought shall, if he sees no reasonable ground for search, forthwith discharge the person but otherwise shall direct that search be made.

(4) Before making a search under the provisions of section 100 or section 101, the officer of customs shall call upon two or more persons to attend and witness the search and may issue an order in writing to them or any of them so to do; and the search shall be made in the presence of such persons and a list of all things seized in the course of such search shall be prepared by such officer or other person and signed by such witnesses.

(5) No female shall be searched by any one excepting a female.

Judgments on Section 102

  • Hitesh Miglani vs Union Of India & Ors — Delhi High Court, 23 Mar 2026. Where seized goods are not 'prohibited goods' under Section 2(33) of the Customs Act, grant of the redemption option under Section 125(1) is obligatory and not discretionary, and a later notification restricting imports…
  • Mahendra Kumar Thakker vs Commissioner Of Customs Preventive — CESTAT, 23 Apr 2026. A person found in conscious concealed possession of gold who fails to discharge the burden of proof under section 123 of the Customs Act, 1962 cannot escape confiscation and penalty under section 112(b) on mere…
  • Qamar Jahan vs Union Of India, Represented By Secretary, Ministry Of Finance — Delhi High Court, 27 Mar 2025. Jewellery that is bona fide in personal use by a traveller forms part of 'personal effects' under the Baggage Rules and must not be detained routinely, and a preprinted waiver form cannot substitute for a valid oral…
  • Yamal Manojbhai vs Union Of India — Supreme Court of India, 4 May 2023. Watches being goods to which Section 123 applies, the proviso to Section 127B bars recourse to the Settlement Commission for cases involving their illicit importation, though here the Bench's divergence of opinion led…
  • Vijay Madanlal Choudhary vs Union Of India — Supreme Court of India, 27 Jul 2022. The argument about proportionality of punishment with reference to the nature of the scheduled offence is wholly unfounded and stands rejected.