What does police clearance certificate consist of?

[sprint2004]

Hello I would like to know what does Police Clearance certificate consists of? Is it just a certificate and some kind of stamping in the passport? The reason for my asking is because my friend back in 1997 (in india) got into a feud which became physical, but he went to the police and surrended himself. So will this appear in the police certicate? Could this appear as a bad thing?

Any help or similar situation would help.

Thanks....