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Army Act, 1950 · Chapter VI: Offences

Section 39: Absence without leave

Any person subject to this Act who commits any of the following offences, that is to say,—

(a) absents himself without leave; or

(b) without sufficient cause overstays leave granted to him; or

(c) being on leave of absence and having received information from proper authority that any corps, or portion of a corps, or any department, to which he belongs, has been ordered on active service, fails, without sufficient cause, to rejoin without delay; or

(d) without sufficient cause fails to appear at the time fixed at the parade or place appointed for exercise or duty; or

(e) when on parade, or on the line of march, without sufficient cause or without leave from his superior officer, quits the parade or line of march; or

(f) when in camp or garrison or elsewhere, is found beyond any limits fixed, or in any place prohibited, by any general, local or other order, without a pass or written leave from his superior officer; or

(g) without leave from his superior officer or without due cause, absents himself from any school when duly ordered to attend there;

shall, on conviction by court-martial, be liable to suffer imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years or such less punishment as is in this Act mentioned.

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 39