3. In this Act, and in all 1[other Acts of Parliament] and Regulations made after the commencement of this Act, unless there is anything repugnant in the subject or context,-

(1) "abet", with its grammatical variations and cognate expressions, shall have the same meaning as in the 2[***] Penal Code:

3[(1a) "Act of Parliament" shall mean an Act passed by Parliament and shall include any Act passed or made by any legislature or any person having authority to legislate under any Constitutional instrument and in force in Bangladesh or any portion thereof:]

(2) "act", used with reference to an offence or a civil wrong, shall include a series of acts, and words which refer to acts done extend also to illegal omissions:

4[(2a) "Advocate" means a person enrolled as such under the Bangladesh Legal Practitioners and Bar Council Order, 1972 (P. O. No. 46 of 1972):]

(3) "affidavit" shall include affirmation and declaration in the case of persons by law allowed to affirm or declare instead of swearing:

5[(3a) "Appellate Division" means-

(a) as respects the period before the 16th day of December, 1972, the Appellate Division of the High Court of Bangladesh; and

(b) as respects any period thereafter the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh constituted under the Constitution:]

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7[* * *]

8[(8aa) "Bangladesh Law" shall mean any Act, Ordinance, Regulation, rule, Order or bye-law in force in Bangladesh:]

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(9) "Chapter" shall mean a Chapter of the Act or Regulation in which the word occurs:

10[(9a) "Chief Revenue Authority" shall mean the National Board of Revenue constituted under the National Board of Revenue Order, 1972 (P. O. No. 76 of 1972:]

11[(9aa) "Chittagong Metropolitan Area" means the Chittagong Metropolitan Area as defined in the Chittagong Metropolitan Police Ordinance, 1978 (Ord. XLVIII of 1978):]

(10) "Collector" shall mean the chief officer in charge of the revenue administration of a District and shall include a Deputy Commissioner, of such District:

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(12) "commencement", used with reference to an Act or Regulation, shall mean the day on which the Act or Regulation comes into force:

(13) "Commissioner" shall mean the chief officer in charge of the revenue-administration of a division and shall include an Additional Commissioner of such division:

13[(13a) "Constitution" means the Constitution of the People's Republic of Bangladesh:]

(14) "Consular officer" shall include consul-general, consul, vice-consul, consular agent, pro-consul and any person for the time being authorized to perform the duties of consul-general, consul, vice-consul or consular agent:

14[(14a) "Dhaka Metropolitan Area" means the Dacca Metropolitan Area as defined in the Dacca Metropolitan Police Ordinance, 1976 (Ord. III of 1976):]

(15) "District Judge" shall mean the Judge of a principal Civil Court of original jurisdiction, but shall not include 15[the High Court Division] in the exercise of its ordinary or extraordinary original civil jurisdiction:

(16) "document" shall include any matter written, expressed or described upon any substance by means of letters, figures or marks, or by more than one of those means which is intended to be used, or which may be used, for the purpose of recording that matter:

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(17) "enactment" shall include a Regulation (as hereinafter defined) 17[* * *] and shall also include any provision contained in any Act or in any such Regulation as aforesaid:

(18) "father", in the case of any one whose personal law permits adoption, shall include an adoptive father:

18[(19) "financial year" shall mean the year commencing

on the first day of July and ending on the 30th day of June:]

(20) a thing shall be deemed to be done in "good faith" where it is in fact done honestly, whether it is done negligently or no:

19[(21) "Government" or "the Government" shall mean-

(a) in relation to anything done before the 26th day of March 1971, any Government which functioned within the territories now comprised in Bangladesh; and

(b) in relation to anything done or to be done after the 25th day of March, 1971, the Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh:]

20[(21a) "Government contracts" and equivalent expressions shall include contracts made in the exercise of the executive authority of the People's Republic of Bangladesh:

(21b) "Government debts" and equivalent expressions shall include debts due to the Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh and any debt due to any Government that functioned within the territories now comprised in Bangladesh:

(21c) "Government Grants" shall include a grant (including a transfer of land or of any interest therein or a payment of any money) made by or on behalf of the Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh and before the 26th day of March, 1971, by or on behalf of any Government that functioned within the territories now comprised in Bangladesh:

(21d) "Government liabilities" and equivalent expressions shall include the liabilities of the Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh and only such liabilities incurred by any other Government that at any time functioned in the territories now comprised in Bangladesh, as have been expressly accepted by the People's Republic of Bangladesh:

(21e) "Government Property" and equivalent expressions shall include any property vested in, or otherwise held for the purposes of the Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh and property which, before the 26th day of March, 1971, vested in any Government that functioned within the territories now comprised in Bangladesh:

(22) "Government securities" shall mean securities of the Government of the People's Republic of Bangla-desh:]

(23) [Repealed by section 3 and Schedule II of the Repealing and Amending Act, 1919 (Act No. XVIII of 1919).]

21[(24) "High Court" shall, as respect any period before the 16th day of December, 1972, mean the High Court of Bangladesh and as respect any period before the 26th day of March, 1971, the High Court that functioned within the territories now comprised in Bangladesh:]

22[(24a) "High Court Division" shall mean the High Court Division of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh constituted under the Constitution:]

(25) "immoveable property" shall include land, benefits to arise out of land, and things attached to the earth, or permanently fastened to anything attached to the earth:

(26) "imprisonment" shall mean imprisonment of either description as defined in the 23[* * *] Penal Code:

24[(26a) "Khulna Metropolitan Area" means the Khulna Metropolitan Area as defined in the Khulna Metropolitan Police Ordinance, 1985 (Act No. LII of 1985):]

25[* * *]

26[(28) "Local authority" shall mean and include a Paura Shava, Zilla Board, Union Panchayet, Board of Trustees of a port or other authority legally entitled to, or entrusted by the Government with, the control or management of a municipal or local fund, or any corporation or other body or authority constituted or established by the Government under any law:]

(31) "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:

(32) "master", used with reference to a ship, shall mean any person (except a pilot or harbour-master) having for the time being control or charge of the ship:

27[(32a) “Metropolitan Area” means any area declared As Metropolitan Area under any Act;]

(33) "month" shall mean a month reckoned according to the British calendar:

(34) "moveable property" shall mean property of every description, except immoveable property:

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(36) "oath" shall include affirmation and declaration in the case of persons by law allowed to affirm or declare instead of swearing:

(37) "offence" shall mean any act or omission made punishable by any law for the time being in force:

29[(37a) "Official Gazette" or "Gazette" shall mean the Bangladesh Gazette:

(37b) "Parliament" shall mean the Parliament for Bangladesh, known as the House of the Nation:]

(38) "Part" shall mean a Part of the Act or Regulation in which the word occurs:

(39) "person" shall include any company or association or body of individuals, whether incorporated or not:

30[(39a) “Police Commissioner” means the Police Commissioner appointed under any Act for any metropolitan area, and also includes an Additional Police Commissioner, a Joint Police Commissioner, a Deputy Police Commissioner, an Additional Deputy Police Commissioner, a Senior Assistant Police Commissioner and an Assistant Police Commissioner;]

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(44) "Public nuisance" shall mean a public nuisance as defined in the 32[* * *] Penal Code:

33[* * *]

34[(44b) "the President" means the President of Bangladesh elected under the Constitution or any person for the time being acting in that office: ]

(45) "registered", used with reference to a document, shall mean registered in 35[* * *] under the law for the time being in force for the registration of documents:

36[(46) "Regulation" shall mean a Regulation made by any person or authority empowered under any constitutional instrument and in force in Bangladesh:]

37[(46a) "the Republic" means the People's Republic of Bangladesh:]

(47) "rule" shall mean a rule made in exercise of a power conferred by any enactment, and shall include a regulation made as a rule under any enactment:

(48) "schedule" shall mean a schedule to the Act or Regulation in which the word occurs:

38[* * *]

(50) "section" shall mean a section of the Act or Regulation in which the word occurs:

39[(50a) "the service of the Republic" means any service, post or office whether in a civil or military capacity, in respect of the Government of Bangladesh, and any other service declared by law to be a service of the Republic:]

(51) "ship" shall include every description of vessel used in navigation not exclusively propelled by oars:

(52) "sign", with its grammatical variations and cognate expressions, shall, with reference to a person who is unable to write his name, include "mark", with its grammatical variations and cognate expressions:

40[* * *]

(53) "son" in the case of any one whose personal law permits adoption, shall include an adopted son:

(54) "sub-section" shall mean a sub-section of the section in which the word occurs:

41[(54a) "suits by or against the Government" and equivalent expressions shall include suits by or against Bangladesh:]

(55) "swear", with its grammatical variation and cognate expressions, shall include affirming and declaring in the case of persons by law allowed to affirm or declare instead of swearing:

42[* * *]:

(56) "vessel" shall include any ship or boat or any other description of vessel used in navigation:

(57) "will" shall include a codicil and every writing making a voluntary posthumous disposition of property:

(58) expressions referring to "writing" shall be construed as including references to printing, lithography, photography and other modes of representing or reproducing words in a visible form: and

(59) "year" shall mean a year reckoned according to the British calendar.

4. (1) The definitions in section 3 of the following words and expressions, that is to say, "affidavit", 43[advocate], "District Judge", "father", "immoveable property", "imprisonment", "Magistrate", "month", "moveable property", "oath", "person", "section", "son", "swear", "will" and "year" apply also, unless there is anything repugnant in the subject or context, to all 44[Acts of Parliament] made after the third day of January, 1868, and to all Regulations made on or after the fourteenth day of January, 1887.

(2) The definitions in the said section of the following words and expressions, that is to say, "abet", "Chapter", "commencement", "financial year", "local authority", "master", "offence", "part", "public nuisance", "registered", "schedule", "ship", "sign", "sub-section" and "writing" apply also, unless there is anything repugnant in the subject or context, to all 45[Acts of Parliament] and Regulations made on or after the fourteenth day of January, 1887.

46[4A. (1) The definitions in section 3 of the expressions

47[* * *] 48[Act of Parliament] 49[* * *] "Chief Revenue Authority", "Gazette", "Government", "Government contracts", "Government debts", "Government grants", "Government liabilities", "Government property", "Government securities", "High Court", 50[High Court Division"] 51[* * *], "official Gazette", 52[Bangladesh laws] 53[* * *] and "suits by or against Government" apply also, unless there is anything repugnant in the subject or context, to all 54[Bangladesh laws].

(2) In any 55[Bangladesh law], references to the 56[Government] in any provision conferring power to make appointments to the civil services of, or civil posts under, the

57[Government] include references to such person as the 58[Government] may direct, and in any provision conferring power to make rules prescribing the conditions of service of persons serving the 59[Government] in a civil capacity include references to any person authorized by the 60[Government] to make rules for the purpose.

(3) The references in any 61[Bangladesh law] to servants of or under, or to service of or under, 62[the Government], to property of, or belonging to, or vested in, the 63[Government], and to forfeitures to 64[the Government] shall be construed as references respectively to persons in the service of the 65[Government], to the service of the Government, to property vested in the Government and to forfeitures to the Government.]