Defence Act, 1954

Challenges by accused.

197.—(1) An accused about to be tried by any court-martial may object, for any reasonable cause, to any member of the court-martial, including the president, whether appointed to serve thereon originally or to fill a vacancy caused by the retirement of an officer, so that the court-martial may be constituted of officers to whom the accused makes no reasonable objection.

(2) Every objection made by an accused to any officer shall be submitted to the other officers appointed to form the court-martial.

(3) If the objection is to the president, such objection, if allowed by one-third or more of the other officers appointed to form the court-martial, shall be allowed, and the court-martial shall adjourn for the purpose of the appointment of another president.

(4) If an objection to the president is allowed, the convening authority shall appoint another president, subject to the same right of the accused to object.

(5) If the objection is to a member other than the president, and is allowed by one-half or more of the votes of the officers entitled to vote, the objection shall be allowed, and the member objected to shall retire and his vacancy may be filled in the prescribed manner by another officer, subject to the same right of the accused to object.

(6) In order to enable an accused to avail himself of his privilege of objecting to any officer, the names of the officers appointed to form the court-martial shall be read over in the hearing of the accused on their first assembling, and before they are sworn, and he shall be asked whether he objects to any of such officers, and a like question shall be repeated in respect of any officer appointed to serve in lieu of a retiring officer.