LAW OF EVIDENCE 539
meaning and the clause enlarges the meaning of the term and makes it include matters which the oridnary meaning would not include.
23 A. L. J. 845.
4. The Court means all persons except Arbitrators who are legally authorised to take evidence. That being so the word Court is not to be confined to persons presiding over a Civil tribunal or a Criminal tribunal.
A Registrar holding an enquiry and taking evidence under the Registration Act is a Court.
15 Mad. 138.
A Commissioner appointed under order XXVI R. 1-10 of the Civil Procedure Code and under Section 503-508 of the Criminal Procedure Code is a person legally entitled to take evidence and as such he is a court.
5. Judges.
No definition of the word “Judges” is given in this Act. Section 2 (8) of the Civil Procedure Code defines the word ‘Judge’ to mean the presiding officer of a Civil Court.
Section 19 of the Indian Penal Code, also gives definition of the word Judge. According to this definition a Judge is a person designated as a Judge also a person who is empowered by law to give, in any legal proceeding, civil or criminal a definitive judgment.
6. Magistrates.
No definition of this term is given in the Act. The General Clauses Act (X of 1897) lays down the following definition of the term:—
Magistrate shall include every person exercising all or any of the powers of a Magistrate under the Code of Criminal Procedure for the time being in force.
7. The peculiarities of these definitions is that they are neither uniform nor are they co-extensive.
(i) The basis of the definition of Judge in the Civil Procedure Code is the presidency of the officer.