Section 128: Summonses to witnesses

128. Summonses to witnesses (1) Any party to a civil or criminal case, inquiry or other proceeding may obtain at the registry of the Intermediate Court or the District Court, as the case may be, summonses to witnesses, with or without a clause requiring the production of books, deeds, papers or writings in their possession, and in any such summons any number of names may be inserted. C54 – 33 [Issue 1] Courts Act (2) Any person on whom a summons is served and who refuses or neglects, without sufficient cause, to appear or to produce any books, papers or writings required by the summons to be produced, or any person who appears in answer to a summons and who on being required to give evidence refuses to be sworn or affirmed or to make a solemn declaration, as the case may be, and to give evidence, shall be liable to a fine not exceeding 2,000 rupees to be inflicted by the Court before whom the default or refusal occurs. (3) Any person not appearing when duly served with a summons may, by warrant under the hand of the Magistrate, be arrested and brought before him to give evidence. (4) (a) In the case of any prosecution entered by any public officer acting in the discharge of his duties, any officer of the department to which the officer belongs, whose attendance as a witness is required, may be served by any other officer of the same department, duly authorised to that effect by the head thereof, with a notice in writing to attend Court. (b) The notice, duly signed or initialled by the witness, with the return of service duly entered thereon, shall be the equivalent, to all intents and purposes, of a summons served by an usher. [S. 128 amended by Act 20 of 1993; Act 4 of 1999.]