Section 82

Section 82 confers 'public servant' status — within the meaning of Section 21 of the Indian Penal Code (now Section 2(60) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023) — on the Controller of Certifying Authorities, Deputy Controllers, and Assistant Controllers. Public servant status under Indian law has two principal legal effects. First, it subjects these officers to the anti-corruption legal framework: public servants can be prosecuted under the Prevention of Corruption Act 1988 for bribery, criminal misconduct, and disproportionate assets. This ensures that officers who exercise the powerful licensing, investigation, and direction functions under the IT Act are held to the highest standards of public conduct. Second, it provides legal protections for their official actions: offences against public servants (such as obstructing or assaulting an officer in the exercise of their functions) attract higher penalties under the BNS. Additionally, prosecuting a public servant for actions taken in their official capacity requires prior government sanction under the procedural law (BNSS Section 218). The public servant designation is consistent across India's regulatory framework — SEBI, RBI, income tax, customs, and other regulatory officers all hold public servant status — and ensures that CCA officers can act with authority and accountability in their regulatory role.