28LProcedure and powers of Tribuna

¹[28L. Procedure and powers of Tribunal.--(1) The Tribunal shall not be bound by the procedure laid down in the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908) but shall be guided by the principles of natural justice, and, subject to the other provisions of this Act and of any rules made by the Central Government, the Tribunal shall have power to lay down and regulate its own procedure including the fixing of places and times of its inquiry and deciding whether to sit in public or in private.

(2) The Tribunal shall have, for the purpose of discharging its functions under this Chapter, the same powers as are vested in a civil court under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908), while trying a suit in respect of the following matters, namely:--

(a) summoning and enforcing the attendance of any person and examining him on oath;

(b) requiring the discovery and production of documents;

(c) any other matter which may be prescribed.

(3) Any proceeding before the Tribunal shall be deemed to be a judicial proceeding within the meaning of sections 193 and 228, and for the purposes of section 196, of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860) and the Tribunal shall be deemed to be a civil court for all the purposes of section 195 and Chapter XXVI of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974).]