Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023
Section 385
Procedure where Court considers that case should not be dealt with under
(1) If the Court in any case considers that a person accused of any of the offences referred to in section 384 and committed in its view or presence should be imprisoned otherwise than in default of payment of fine, or that a fine exceeding two hundred rupees should be imposed upon him, or such Court is for any other reason of opinion that the case should not be disposed of under section 384, such Court, after recording the facts constituting the offence and the statement of the accused as hereinbefore provided, may forward the case to a Magistrate having jurisdiction to try the same, and may require security to be given for the appearance of such person before such Magistrate, or if sufficient security is not given, shall forward such person in custody to such Magistrate.
(2) The Magistrate to whom any case is forwarded under this section shall proceed to deal with, as far as may be, as if it were instituted on a police report.
Why this exists
The court's own summary power under section 384 is meant for quick, limited punishment of contempt-like offences witnessed directly by the judge. But when the offence deserves stiffer punishment than the court's summary power allows, fairness requires a full trial with all the usual procedural protections, which is why the matter is forwarded to a Magistrate rather than dealt with informally on the spot.