These sections deal with how powers may be exercised and how official positions/successors are interpreted in statutes.
## Section-Wise Snapshot
Section
Heading
Core Rule
14
Power exercisable from time to time
A power conferred can be exercised as often as the occasion requires (not just once).
15
Power to appoint includes ex-officio
The authority empowered to appoint may appoint a person by name OR by virtue of office (ex-officio).
16
Power to appoint includes suspend/dismiss
Whoever has power to appoint also has power to suspend or dismiss the appointee (unless contrary intention).
17
Substitution of functionaries
For showing applicability of law to every person, mention either the present officer's title or the officer who commonly performs those functions.
18
Successors
For functionaries or corporations having perpetual succession, the law of successors must be specified.
19
Official chiefs and subordinates
Any law applicable to the chief/superior also applies to deputies/subordinates acting in place of the superior.
## Conceptual Threads
### Thread 1 — Powers are dynamic (S.14)
A statute that says "the Board may issue guidelines" doesn't allow only one issuance. Section 14 makes the power recurring.
### Thread 2 — Appoint = Remove (S.15 + S.16)
The authority that gives a job can also take it back. This is a powerful principle that prevents administrative paralysis.
### Thread 3 — Office continues even if person changes (S.17, 18, 19)
Laws attach to offices, not individuals. When the SP transfers out, the new SP steps into the same legal shoes.
Worked example
### Example 1
Example — Section 14
A Companies Act provision empowers the Central Government to "appoint inspectors to investigate the affairs of a company." Government appointed inspectors for Company X in 2020.
Q: Can it appoint inspectors again for Company Y in 2024 under the same provision?
Answer: Yes. Section 14 allows the power to be exercised from time to time as occasion requires.
### Example 2
Example — Section 16
A statute empowers the State Government to appoint a Director of Education. A Director is appointed in 2022. In 2025, allegations of misconduct surface.
Q: Can the State Government suspend/dismiss the Director if the Act is silent on removal?
Answer: Yes — Section 16 reads the power to remove into the power to appoint (unless contrary intention).
### Example 3
Example — Section 19
A law gives certain inspection powers to the "District Magistrate." The DM is on leave; the Additional DM performs his duties.
Answer: Under Section 19, the law applies to the deputy/subordinate (ADM) when performing the duties of the superior.
⚠️ Common exam mistakes
Treating power conferred as a 'one-shot' power — Section 14 makes it recurring.
Forgetting that the appointing authority's power to dismiss flows automatically from Section 16, even if the Act is silent.
Confusing Section 17 (substitution of titles in statutes) with Section 18 (corporate/perpetual succession).
Bare-Act text Sections 14 to 19 · The General Clauses Act, 1897 · click to expand
Section 14 — Where, by any Central Act or Regulation made after the commencement of this Act, any power is conferred then unless a different intention appears that power may be exercised from time to time as occasion requires.
Section 16 — Where, by any Central Act or Regulation, a power to make any appointment is conferred, then, unless a different intention appears, the authority having for the time being power to make the appointment shall also have power to suspend or dismiss any person appointed.