PESHAWAR, Jan 23: The District and Sessions Judge, Peshawar, Hayat Ali Shah, has delegated powers of Justice of Peace to all the additional district and sessions judges here on Wednesday.

He has issued a notification in which it is mentioned that the additional district and sessions judges are empowered to exercise all the powers of justice of peace under the Criminal Procedure Code except the powers of transferring investigation of a case from a police officer to another officer.

The district and sessions judge has delegated the powers under section 22 of the Criminal Procedure Code.

Under section 22-A and 22-B of the Criminal Procedure Code, the justice of peace has various duties and powers. Any justice of peace for a local area on receipt of information of the occurrence of any incident involving a breach of peace, or of the commission of any offence within such local area, forthwith make inquiries into the matter and report in writing the result of the inquiries to the nearest magistrate and to the officer-in-charge of the nearest police station.

The justice of peace for any local area has powers to call upon any members of the police force on duty to aid him in preventing the escape of any person who has participated in the commission of any cognizable offence or against whom a reasonable complaint has been made or credible information has been received or a reasonable suspicion exists of his having so participated.

The justice of peace could also call upon the police force in the prevention of a crime in general and, in particular, in the prevention of a breach of peace or a disturbance of the public tranquillity.

The justice of peace could also attest any such document required by or under any law for the time being in force to be attested by a magistrate and could verify any document brought before him by any person.