From IPC to BNS, section by section.
The Indian Penal Code, Code of Criminal Procedure, and Indian Evidence Act stood for over 150 years. On 1 July 2024 they were replaced by the BNS, BNSS, and BSA. This is the section-by-section mapping — every old section paired with its new counterpart, every change classified, every post-2024 ruling cited.
Three conversion tables, every section.
Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) to Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) Section Mapping — Complete Conversion Table
Complete section-by-section mapping from CrPC 1973 to BNSS 2023. Find the BNSS equivalent of any CrPC section instantly. Updated for 2026.
Indian Evidence Act (IEA) to Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA) Section Mapping — Complete Conversion Table
Complete section-by-section mapping from Indian Evidence Act 1872 to BSA 2023. Find the BSA equivalent of any Evidence Act section instantly.
Indian Penal Code (IPC) to Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) Section Mapping — Complete Conversion Table
Complete section-by-section mapping from IPC 1860 to BNS 2023. Find the BNS equivalent of any IPC section instantly. Updated for 2026.
191 section pairs across three codes.
IPC ↔ BNS 74 mappings
BNS Section 304 — Snatching (New Offence, No Central IPC Equivalent)
BNS Section 304 creates a snatching offence in the central criminal code for the first time: theft is snatching if, in order to commit theft, the offender suddenly or quickly or forcibly seizes or secures or grabs or takes away movable property from any person or from his possession. Punishment is imprisonment of either description up to three years, and the offender is also liable to fine; the BNSS First Schedule makes it cognizable, non-bailable and triable by any Magistrate. The central IPC had no equivalent; Gujarat (IPC ss. 379A–379B, Gujarat Act 6 of 2019) and Tripura (IPC ss. 382A–382B, Tripura Act 4 of 2019) had inserted differently worded snatching offences with minimum terms of five or seven years.
Section 103(2) BNS — Mob Lynching (New Provision)
Section 103(2) BNS, which has no IPC counterpart, makes specific provision for murder committed by a group of five or more persons acting in concert on the ground of race, caste or community, sex, place of birth, language, personal belief or any other similar ground, and prescribes death or imprisonment for life plus fine for each member of the group — the same punishment as Section 103(1).
Section 111 BNS — Organised Crime (New Provision)
Section 111 BNS introduces organised crime as a substantive offence in the general criminal code for the first time, covering syndicate-based continuing unlawful activities including kidnapping, extortion, land grabbing, contract killing, cyber-crimes, and economic offences, with punishment extending to death.
Section 120A-120B IPC vs Section 61 BNS — Criminal Conspiracy
Section 61 BNS joins the definition in Section 120A IPC (now sub-section (1)) and the punishment in Section 120B IPC (now sub-section (2)) into one section. The definition adds the words 'with the common object': two or more persons must 'agree with the common object to do, or cause to be done' an illegal act or a legal act by illegal means. The proviso, the Explanation, the punishments and the First Schedule classification are carried over unchanged.
Section 124A IPC — Sedition Abolished Under BNS
IPC Section 124A (sedition) is not re-enacted in the BNS, which nowhere uses the words "sedition" or "disaffection". Section 152 BNS (Act endangering sovereignty, unity and integrity of India) reuses 124A's modes-of-expression wording and an Explanation modelled on 124A's Explanations 2 and 3, but penalises a different object — secession, armed rebellion, subversive or separatist activities and endangering sovereignty or unity and integrity — rather than hatred, contempt or disaffection towards the Government.
Section 149 IPC vs Section 190 BNS — Unlawful Assembly and Common Object
Section 190 BNS repeats Section 149 IPC word for word. The surrounding scheme is regrouped: Sections 141 to 145, 150, 151, 157 and 158 IPC become the nine sub-sections of Section 189 BNS, and Sections 146 to 148 IPC become Section 191(1) to (3). The one change in punishment is for rioting armed with a deadly weapon: the maximum rises from three years (Section 148 IPC) to five years (Section 191(3) BNS).
Section 152 IPC vs Section 195 BNS — Assaulting or Obstructing a Public Servant Suppressing a Riot
Section 195 BNS splits Section 152 IPC in two. Assaulting, obstructing or using criminal force on a public servant who is dispersing an unlawful assembly or suppressing a riot or affray (Section 195(1)) keeps the three-year maximum, but a fine, where imposed, must be at least twenty-five thousand rupees. Threatening to assault, attempting to obstruct, or threatening or attempting to use criminal force (Section 195(2)) now carries up to one year instead of three, and the BNSS First Schedule lists it as non-cognizable and triable by any Magistrate. The neighbouring Section 153 IPC (wanton provocation to riot) becomes Section 192 BNS with one comma dropped.
Section 153A IPC vs Section 196 BNS — Promoting Enmity Between Different Groups
Section 196 BNS repeats Section 153A IPC. The one substantive-looking change is that clause (1)(a) now names 'through electronic communication' among the means, alongside the existing 'or otherwise'; the rest is punctuation and spelling. Punishments (up to three years, or fine, or both; up to five years and fine in a place of worship) and classification (cognizable, non-bailable, Magistrate of the first class) are unchanged, and prior Government sanction is still needed for cognizance (Section 217(1) BNSS). The neighbouring Section 197 BNS (formerly 153B IPC) adds a new clause (d) on false or misleading information.
Section 153B IPC vs Section 197 BNS — Imputations Prejudicial to National Integration
Section 197 BNS carries over the three limbs of Section 153B IPC — imputations that a group cannot be loyal to the Constitution, assertions that a group should be denied citizens' rights, and appeals about a group's obligations that are likely to cause enmity — and adds a new clause (d): making or publishing false or misleading information jeopardising the sovereignty, unity and integrity or security of India. It also names "electronic communication" among the modes. Punishments (three years, or five years with fine in a place of worship), classification and the sanction requirement (now Section 217(2) BNSS) are unchanged.
Section 279 IPC vs Section 281 BNS — Rash Driving or Riding on a Public Way
Section 281 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 repeats Section 279 IPC word for word: driving any vehicle, or riding, on a public way so rashly or negligently as to endanger human life or to be likely to cause hurt or injury to another person remains punishable with imprisonment of either description up to six months, or fine up to one thousand rupees, or both. The classification in the BNSS First Schedule (cognizable, bailable, triable by any Magistrate) matches the CrPC First Schedule. The changes around it are in neighbouring provisions: Section 125 BNS raises the fines for acts endangering life, and Section 25(1) BNSS now requires the court to order whether sentences for several offences run concurrently or consecutively.
Section 294 IPC vs Section 296 BNS — Obscene Acts and Songs
Section 296 BNS repeats the offence in Section 294 IPC — an obscene act in a public place, or an obscene song, ballad or words sung, recited or uttered in or near a public place, to the annoyance of others — and keeps the three-month maximum, but caps the fine at one thousand rupees where Section 294 IPC left it unlimited. The offence remains cognizable, bailable and triable by any Magistrate, and it is not in the BNSS compounding tables.
Section 295A IPC vs Section 299 BNS — Outraging Religious Feelings
Section 299 BNS repeats Section 295A IPC word for word except that it adds "through electronic means" to the modes of insult (words, signs, visible representations "or otherwise"). The punishment (up to three years, or fine, or both), the classification (cognizable, non-bailable, Magistrate of the first class) and the requirement of previous government sanction (now Section 217(1) BNSS) are unchanged.
Section 302 IPC vs Section 103 BNS — Punishment for Murder
Section 302 IPC is retained as BNS 103(1) with identical text; BNS 103(2) adds a new sub-section for murder by a group of five or more persons acting in concert on specified grounds (mob lynching), with the same punishment.
Section 303 IPC vs Section 104 BNS — Punishment for Murder by Life-Convict
Section 303 IPC made death the only punishment for murder by a person under sentence of imprisonment for life; the Supreme Court struck it down as unconstitutional and void in Mithu v. State of Punjab (1983). Section 104 BNS restores a separate offence for the same person but prescribes death or imprisonment for life, which shall mean the remainder of that person's natural life. It is cognizable, non-bailable and triable by the Court of Session, and carries no fine.
Section 304 IPC vs Section 105 BNS — Punishment for Culpable Homicide Not Amounting to Murder
BNS 105 keeps the two limbs of IPC 304 and their maxima (imprisonment for life or up to ten years where the act is done with intention; up to ten years where it is done with knowledge only). Two sentencing changes: in the intention limb (Part I) a term of imprisonment 'shall not be less than five years'; in the knowledge limb (Part II) 'or with fine, or with both' becomes 'and with fine', so fine alone is no longer available. Both limbs remain cognizable, non-bailable and triable by the Court of Session.
Section 304 IPC vs Section 105 BNS — When a Killing Is Culpable Homicide Not Amounting to Murder
The route into BNS 105 is the same as the route into IPC 304: the act must be culpable homicide (BNS 100, textually identical to IPC 299) but not murder, either because none of the four clauses of BNS 101 is met or because one of its five Exceptions applies (carried over from IPC 300 with drafting changes only). What changed is the punishment at the end of the route: a five-year minimum term in the intention limb and imprisonment with fine in the knowledge limb.
Section 304A IPC vs Section 106 BNS — Causing Death by Negligence (and the Hit-and-Run Sub-section)
BNS 106(1) replaces IPC 304A with the same offence words but a higher ceiling: up to five years (was two), and the offender is also liable to fine (IPC allowed imprisonment, or fine, or both). A registered medical practitioner whose rash or negligent act occurs while performing a medical procedure keeps a two-year ceiling, with liability to fine. New BNS 106(2) punishes causing death by rash and negligent driving and escaping without reporting it to a police officer or Magistrate soon after the incident, with up to ten years and fine. The BNS came into force on 1 July 2024 except section 106(2) (S.O. 850(E), 23 February 2024, as recorded in footnote 1 to BNS section 1 in the official text); the official text records no later notification bringing section 106(2) into force.
Section 304B IPC vs Section 80 BNS — Dowry Death
BNS s.80 repeats IPC s.304B word for word: the same definition of dowry death, the same seven-year window, the same deeming clause and the same punishment (not less than seven years, up to imprisonment for life). The only change in the section is that the Gazette prints the Dowry Prohibition Act citation "28 of 1961" in the margin instead of inside the Explanation. The companion presumption moves from IEA s.113B to BSA s.118 with minor drafting edits.
Section 306 IPC vs Section 108 BNS — Abetment of Suicide
BNS s.108 repeats IPC s.306 word for word: imprisonment of either description up to ten years, and the offender shall also be liable to fine. The companion offence for a child, a person of unsound mind, or a delirious or intoxicated person moves from IPC s.305 to BNS s.107, with the categories redrafted and the punishment unchanged. The presumption for a married woman's suicide moves from IEA s.113A to BSA s.117. Abetment is now defined in BNS s.45, formerly IPC s.107.
Section 307 IPC vs Section 109 BNS — Attempt to Murder
Section 109(1) BNS repeats the first paragraph of Section 307 IPC word for word: up to ten years and fine, or imprisonment for life if hurt is caused. Section 109(2) carries over the life-convict paragraph but adds an alternative: a life convict who causes hurt may now be punished with death or with imprisonment for life meaning the remainder of natural life, where Section 307 provided only death. Classification is unchanged: cognizable, non-bailable, triable by the Court of Session.
Section 323-326 IPC vs Section 115-118 BNS — Hurt and Grievous Hurt (IPC 319-326)
BNS Sections 114 to 118 carry forward IPC Sections 319 to 326. The eighth kind of grievous hurt now needs fifteen days of severe bodily pain or inability to follow ordinary pursuits instead of twenty (Section 116(h)). The fine for simple hurt rises from one thousand to ten thousand rupees (Section 115(2)), the fine for hurt by dangerous weapons or means is capped at twenty thousand rupees (Section 118(1)), and grievous hurt by dangerous weapons or means gets a one-year minimum for the term alternative (Section 118(2)). Two new offences are added: grievous hurt causing permanent disability or persistent vegetative state (Section 117(3)) and grievous hurt by a group of five or more on grounds such as race, caste or community (Section 117(4)). Section 118(1) is non-bailable in the BNSS First Schedule; Section 324 IPC was bailable.
Section 34 IPC vs Section 3(5) BNS — Common Intention
Section 3(5) BNS repeats Section 34 IPC word for word. The rule is no longer a stand-alone section with its own heading: it is sub-section (5) of Section 3, 'General explanations', alongside the old Sections 35 to 38 IPC as sub-sections (6) to (9). Section 3(5) creates no offence and carries no punishment of its own; the accused is liable for the criminal act as if he had done it alone.
Section 354 IPC vs Section 74 BNS — Assault on Woman to Outrage Modesty
BNS s.74 repeats the operative words of IPC s.354, including the punishment substituted in 2013 (Act 13 of 2013, s.6, w.e.f. 3-2-2013): not less than one year, up to five years, and liable to fine. The heading gains the words "use of". The section now sits in BNS Chapter V under "Of criminal force and assault against woman". Classification is unchanged: cognizable, non-bailable, triable by any Magistrate. A Chhattisgarh State amendment that added a proviso to IPC s.354 has no counterpart in the Gazette text of BNS s.74.
Section 384 IPC vs Section 308 BNS — Extortion (IPC 383-389)
BNS Section 308 brings IPC Sections 383 to 389 into one section of seven sub-sections. The definition is unchanged but gains an Illustration (e) on a threat sent through an electronic device. The maximum for simple extortion rises from three years (IPC 384) to seven years (Section 308(2)), and the BNSS First Schedule makes it triable by a Magistrate of the first class instead of any Magistrate. The enhanced punishment of imprisonment for life in IPC 388 and 389 where the threatened accusation was of an offence under Section 377 IPC is omitted. The other punishments are unchanged.
Section 406 IPC vs Section 316 BNS — Criminal Breach of Trust (IPC 405-409)
BNS Section 316 brings IPC Sections 405 to 409 into one section: the definition is sub-section (1), simple criminal breach of trust is sub-section (2), and breach by a carrier, wharfinger or warehouse-keeper, by a clerk or servant, and by a public servant, banker, merchant, factor, broker, attorney or agent are sub-sections (3), (4) and (5). The maximum for simple criminal breach of trust rises from three years (IPC 406) to five years (Section 316(2)); the other punishments and the classification under the First Schedule are unchanged.
Section 427 IPC vs Section 324 BNS — Mischief (IPC 425-427 and 440)
BNS Section 324 brings IPC Sections 425, 426, 427 and 440 into one section. The definition (324(1)) is unchanged in substance. The basic punishment rises from three months (IPC 426) to six months (324(2)). The single IPC 427 tier for damage of fifty rupees or upwards (two years) is replaced by three tiers: loss or damage to any property including Government or Local Authority property (one year, 324(3)); twenty thousand rupees and more but less than one lakh (two years, 324(4)); one lakh rupees or upwards (five years, 324(5)), which is now cognizable and not compoundable. IPC 440 becomes 324(6) unchanged.
Section 447-448 IPC vs Section 329 BNS — Criminal Trespass and House-Trespass (IPC 441-448)
BNS Section 329 carries the definitions of criminal trespass and house-trespass (IPC 441 and 442) and their punishments (IPC 447 and 448); Section 330 carries lurking house-trespass and house-breaking (IPC 443 and 445). The separate night-time definitions in IPC 444 and 446 are dropped: the words 'after sunset and before sunrise' are written into the night-time punishments in Section 331(2), (4), (6) and (8). The definitions are unchanged in substance (only quotation marks, two commas and the lettering of the house-breaking clauses change). The fine for criminal trespass rises from five hundred to five thousand rupees (Section 329(3)) and for house-trespass from one thousand to five thousand rupees (Section 329(4)); imprisonment terms and the First Schedule classification are unchanged.
Section 491 IPC vs Section 357 BNS — Breach of Contract to Attend on and Supply Wants of Helpless Person
Section 357 BNS repeats Section 491 IPC word for word except the fine: the maximum fine rises from two hundred rupees to five thousand rupees. The maximum imprisonment stays at three months, and the offence remains non-cognizable, bailable, triable by any Magistrate and compoundable by the person with whom the offender contracted. The section now sits at the end of BNS Chapter XIX instead of in a chapter of its own.
Section 498 IPC vs Section 84 BNS — Enticing or Taking Away or Detaining with Criminal Intent a Married Woman
Section 84 BNS re-enacts Section 498 IPC but omits the words "from that man, or from any person having the care of her on behalf of that man". The punishment (up to two years, or fine, or both), the classification (non-cognizable, bailable, triable by any Magistrate) and compounding by the husband and the woman are unchanged. Section 219(2) BNSS still treats only the husband as the person aggrieved, but drops the CrPC proviso that let a person caring for the woman on his behalf complain in his absence.
Section 498A IPC vs Sections 85-86 BNS — Cruelty by Husband or Relatives of Husband
BNS s.85 repeats the offence and punishment words of IPC s.498A (up to three years and fine), and s.86 carries the Explanation defining cruelty as a separate section, opening 'For the purposes of section 85' instead of 'For the purposes of this section'. The two limbs of cruelty, the conditional cognizability, non-bailability, trial by a Magistrate of the first class, the bar on compounding and the rule on who may set the court in motion (BNSS s.220, formerly CrPC s.198A) are unchanged.
Section 505 IPC vs Section 353 BNS — Statements Conducing to Public Mischief
Section 353 BNS carries over the three sub-sections of Section 505 IPC — statements causing mutiny or public fear or inciting one class against another (sub-section (1)), statements creating enmity between groups (sub-section (2)) and the aggravated form in a place of worship (sub-section (3)) — and the good-faith Exception. It adds "false information" to the kinds of statement covered and "including through electronic means" to sub-sections (1) and (2). Punishments (three years; five years with fine in a place of worship), classification and the sanction requirements (now Section 217 BNSS) are unchanged.
Section 506 IPC vs Section 351 BNS — Criminal Intimidation (IPC 503, 506, 507)
BNS Section 351 brings IPC Sections 503, 506 and 507 into one section: the definition is sub-section (1), simple criminal intimidation is sub-section (2), intimidation by a threat to cause death, grievous hurt and the other listed harms is sub-section (3), and intimidation by anonymous communication is sub-section (4). The definition now reads 'threatens another by any means'. Punishments, the First Schedule classification (non-cognizable and bailable throughout) and compounding are unchanged.
Section 509 IPC vs Section 79 BNS — Word, Gesture or Act Intended to Insult the Modesty of a Woman
Section 79 BNS repeats Section 509 IPC with one textual change: 'exhibits any object' becomes 'exhibits any object in any form'. The punishment (simple imprisonment up to three years and fine) and the classification (cognizable, bailable, triable by any Magistrate) are unchanged. The offence moves from the IPC chapter on criminal intimidation, insult and annoyance into BNS Chapter V, offences against woman and child, and BNSS procedural safeguards now name Section 79.
Section 510 IPC vs Section 355 BNS — Misconduct in Public by a Drunken Person
Section 355 BNS repeats the offence in Section 510 IPC word for word — appearing in a state of intoxication in a public place, or in a place where entry is a trespass, and conducting oneself so as to cause annoyance to any person. The fine cap rises from ten rupees to one thousand rupees, and community service is added as a punishment. The 24-hour simple imprisonment limit and the classification (non-cognizable, bailable, any Magistrate) are unchanged.
Section 511 IPC vs Section 62 BNS — Attempt to Commit Offences
BNS Section 62 re-enacts IPC Section 511 with the same heading, the same punishment (up to one-half of imprisonment for life or of the longest term provided for the offence, or the fine provided for the offence, or both) and the same two Illustrations. The only textual change is 'this Code' becoming 'this Sanhita' in two places. The section moves from the IPC's last chapter (Chapter XXIII, Of Attempts to Commit Offences) to BNS Chapter IV, Of Abetment, Criminal Conspiracy and Attempt. The First Schedule classification is unchanged.
Section 53 IPC vs Section 4 BNS — Punishments
BNS Section 4 repeats the five punishments listed in IPC Section 53 — death, imprisonment for life, imprisonment (rigorous or simple), forfeiture of property and fine — as clauses (a) to (e), and adds a sixth, community service, as clause (f). The IPC's ordinal headings ('First', 'Secondly', 'Fourthly' …) and the gap left by the 1949 omission of 'Thirdly — Penal servitude' disappear. Section 53A IPC, which construed old references to 'transportation', has no BNS counterpart.
Sections 1–5 IPC vs Section 1 BNS — Title, Extent and Territorial Application
BNS Section 1 brings IPC Sections 1 to 5 into one section. Sub-sections (3) to (6) carry over IPC Sections 2 to 5 (liability for acts within India, offences triable in India though committed abroad, extra-territorial application, and the saving for mutiny and desertion laws and special or local laws) with drafting changes. The IPC extent clause ('shall extend to the whole of India') is not reproduced, a commencement clause is added as Section 1(2), and clause (b) of the IPC Section 4 Explanation, which took the meaning of 'computer resource' from the Information Technology Act, 2000, is omitted.
Sections 107-109 IPC vs Sections 45-49 BNS — Abetment
BNS Sections 45, 46, 47 and 49 re-enact IPC Sections 107, 108, 108A and 109 with drafting changes: the three modes of abetment are lettered (a) to (c) instead of First to Thirdly, 'Court of Justice' becomes 'Court', 'lunatic' becomes 'person of unsound mind', 'Goa' becomes 'country X', 'Code' becomes 'Sanhita', and IPC 109's bribery illustration is dropped. Section 48 is new: a person who, outside India, abets an act in India that would be an offence in India abets an offence within the meaning of the Sanhita. The punishment rule in Section 49 (the punishment provided for the offence) and the First Schedule classification are unchanged.
Sections 117–120 IPC vs Sections 57–60 BNS — Abetment by the Public and Concealing a Design to Commit an Offence
Sections 57 to 60 BNS replace Sections 117 to 120 IPC one for one. The maximum for abetting an offence by the public or by more than ten persons rises from three years to seven years and fine becomes mandatory (Section 57). A public servant who conceals a design by any omission, not only an illegal omission, is now covered (Section 59). Sections 58 and 60 are re-set into lettered clauses with no change of substance, and the First Schedule classification is unchanged.
Sections 121–130 IPC vs Sections 147–158 BNS — Offences Against the State
BNS Sections 147 to 158 (Chapter VII) re-enact IPC Sections 121 to 130 (Chapter VI). Leaving aside Section 152, every punishment and every First Schedule classification is unchanged. The substantive changes are in the foreign-State offences: Section 153 replaces 'any Asiatic Power in alliance or at peace with' the Government of India with 'any foreign State at peace with' it, and Section 154 replaces 'any Power in alliance or at peace with' with 'any foreign State at peace with'. Section 148 adds 'and beyond' to 'within or without India'. Section 124A (sedition) has no counterpart in these words; BNS Section 152 is a differently framed offence covered on its own page.
Sections 131–140 IPC vs Sections 159–168 BNS — Offences Relating to the Army, Navy and Air Force
BNS Sections 159 to 168 (Chapter VIII) re-enact IPC Sections 131 to 140 (Chapter VII). Three penalties rise: Section 165 (IPC 137, master of a merchant vessel on which a deserter is concealed) from five hundred to three thousand rupees; Section 166 (IPC 138, abetting insubordination) from six months to two years; and Section 168 (IPC 140, wearing a soldier's, sailor's or airman's garb) from a fine of five hundred to two thousand rupees. The Explanation to IPC 131 extending 'officer', 'soldier', 'sailor' and 'airman' to any person subject to the service Acts is omitted; the harbouring exception in Section 164 now covers 'the spouse of the deserter' instead of 'a wife to her husband'; and Section 167 names the Air Force Act, 1950, the Army Act, 1950 and the Navy Act, 1957. Classification under the First Schedule is unchanged.
Sections 166, 168–171 IPC vs Sections 198, 202–205 BNS — Public Servant Disobeying Law, Unlawful Trade and Purchase, and Personating a Public Servant
Sections 198 and 202 to 205 BNS carry over Sections 166 and 168 to 171 IPC in the same words, with three changes of substance. Personating a public servant (Section 204) now carries a minimum of six months and a maximum of three years, with fine mandatory; Section 170 IPC allowed up to two years, or fine, or both. A public servant unlawfully engaging in trade (Section 202) may now be sentenced to community service. The fine for wearing the garb or carrying the token of a public servant (Section 205) rises from two hundred to five thousand rupees. Section 198 drops a comma and reads 'Court' for 'Court of Justice' in its Illustration; Section 203 is identical. The First Schedule classification is unchanged.
Sections 166A and 166B IPC vs Sections 199 and 200 BNS — Public Servant Disobeying Direction under Law; Non-treatment of Victim
Sections 199 and 200 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 carry over Sections 166A and 166B IPC with the same punishments. Section 199(c) now refers to information given under Section 173(1) BNSS and lists the BNS counterparts of the offences in Section 166A(c), with Section 77 BNS (voyeurism) added. Section 200 now refers to Section 397 BNSS, which also covers victims of four POCSO Act offences. Both remain bailable and triable by a Magistrate of the first class; Section 199 is cognizable and Section 200 non-cognizable. No sanction is needed to prosecute either offence under Section 218(1) BNSS.
Sections 171A–171I IPC vs Sections 169–177 BNS — Offences Relating to Elections
Chapter IXA of the IPC (Sections 171A to 171-I) becomes Chapter IX of the BNS (Sections 169 to 177) in the same order and substantially the same words. The fine for unauthorised election expenses rises from five hundred to ten thousand rupees (Section 176) and the fine for failing to keep election accounts from five hundred to five thousand rupees (Section 177). Two punctuation edits appear in Section 171. The BNSS First Schedule now lists personation at an election as non-cognizable; the CrPC First Schedule listed it as cognizable.
Sections 172–180 IPC vs Sections 206–215 BNS — Contempt of the Lawful Authority of Public Servants
Sections 206 to 215 BNS re-enact Sections 172 to 180 IPC (including Section 174A) in the same order and with the same ingredients and terms of imprisonment. The fines are raised: five hundred rupees becomes five thousand, one thousand becomes ten thousand for the Court-related limbs, one thousand becomes five thousand in Sections 212(a), 213 and 214, and five hundred becomes three thousand in Section 215. Section 211(c) keeps its one-thousand-rupee fine. Section 209 adds community service as an alternative punishment. "Court of Justice" becomes "Court", the limbs become clauses (a) and (b), and cross-references are renumbered to the BNSS and the BNS. Classification is unchanged. Under Section 215(1)(a) BNSS the public-servant complaint bar now covers Sections 206 to 223 BNS but excludes Section 209, and an authorised public servant may also complain.
Sections 182–188 IPC vs Sections 217–223 BNS — False Information, Obstruction and Disobedience of Public Servants
Sections 217 to 223 BNS re-enact Sections 182 to 188 IPC in the same order and with the same ingredients. Section 217 (false information to a public servant) doubles the maximum from six months to one year and raises the fine cap from ₹1,000 to ₹10,000. Section 223 (disobedience of a promulgated order) raises the first limb from one month to six months with a ₹2,500 fine (IPC: ₹200) and the second from six months to one year with a ₹5,000 fine (IPC: ₹1,000). Fines rise in Sections 218, 219, 221 and 222; Section 220 is identical. Classification is unchanged, and the public-servant complaint bar continues under Section 215(1)(a) BNSS.
Sections 191–195 IPC vs Sections 227–231 BNS — False Evidence
Sections 227 to 231 BNS re-enact Sections 191 to 195 IPC. The definitions of giving false evidence (Section 227) and fabricating false evidence (Section 228) and the terms of imprisonment are unchanged. The fines, which the IPC left without a stated limit, are now capped: ₹10,000 for false evidence in a judicial proceeding (Section 229(1)), ₹5,000 in any other case (Section 229(2)) and ₹50,000 where the intent is to procure a capital conviction (Section 230(1)). Sections 229 and 230 are split into sub-sections, and "Court of Justice" becomes "Court". Classification is unchanged, and prosecution for false evidence in or in relation to a court proceeding still needs the court's written complaint (Section 215(1)(b) BNSS).
Sections 201–211 IPC vs Sections 238–248 BNS — Offences Against Public Justice
Sections 238 to 248 BNS re-enact Sections 201 to 211 IPC in the same order. The largest change is in false charges (Section 248): the basic limb rises from two to five years with a fine of up to ₹2 lakh, and the aggravated limb now applies to false charges of offences punishable with death, life or ten years or more (IPC: seven years or more), with a maximum of ten years (IPC: seven). Destroying a document to prevent its production (Section 241) and fraudulent removal of property to defeat a forfeiture or decree (Section 243) rise from two to three years with a ₹5,000 fine cap; Section 239 caps its fine at ₹5,000. The rest are identical or minor edits ("Court of Justice" becomes "Court", clauses, renumbered cross-references), except that the Explanation to Section 240 no longer lists the counterparts of IPC 393 and 394. A false charge of an offence punishable with ten years or more (but not life) now goes to a Court of Session.
Sections 228–228A IPC vs Sections 267, 72–73 BNS — Insult to a Court and Disclosure of a Sexual-Offence Victim's Identity
Section 228 IPC becomes Section 267 BNS with the fine cap raised from one thousand to five thousand rupees. Section 228A IPC is split: sub-sections (1) and (2) become Section 72 BNS, which now also protects victims of the new offence in Section 69 BNS and reads "a child" for "minor"; sub-section (3) and its Explanation become a separate Section 73 BNS. Punishments for disclosure and for unauthorised publication (up to two years and fine) and the classification are unchanged.
Sections 268, 290–291 IPC vs Sections 270, 292–293 BNS — Public Nuisance
The definition of public nuisance in Section 268 IPC is carried into Section 270 BNS with its closing sentence joined by "but". The residual punishment for public nuisance (Section 290 IPC, now Section 292 BNS) rises from a fine of up to ₹200 to a fine of up to ₹1,000. Continuing a nuisance after a public servant's injunction (Section 291 IPC, now Section 293 BNS) keeps simple imprisonment up to six months, but the fine, previously unlimited, is now capped at ₹5,000. Classification is unchanged.
Sections 269–278 IPC vs Sections 271–280 BNS — Spreading Infection, Quarantine, Adulteration of Food and Drugs, Water and Air
IPC Sections 269 to 278 carry over as BNS Sections 271 to 280, two numbers higher. The two infection offences are unchanged. The quarantine offence now covers any "mode of transport" instead of only vessels. Fine caps rise for adulteration and sale of noxious food or drugs (₹1,000 to ₹5,000), fouling water (₹500 to ₹5,000) and noxious atmosphere (₹500 to ₹1,000); the maximum prison term doubles for adulterating drugs (six months to one year) and for fouling water (three to six months). Classification under the First Schedule is unchanged.
Sections 280–289 IPC vs Sections 282–291 BNS — Rash Navigation, Unsafe Vessels, Obstruction and Negligent Conduct with Dangerous Things
IPC Sections 280 to 289 carry over as BNS Sections 282 to 291, two numbers higher, with no change to any maximum prison term. Section 283 BNS replaces "or with fine, or with both" with "and with fine which shall not be less than ten thousand rupees". Every other section raises its fine cap (₹1,000 to ₹10,000 for rash navigation; ₹200 to ₹5,000 for obstruction; ₹1,000 to ₹2,000 for fire; ₹1,000 to ₹5,000 for the rest). The building offence now also covers constructing a building, and "take such order" becomes "take such measures" in Sections 290 and 291. Classification is unchanged.
Sections 292–294A IPC vs Sections 294–297 BNS — Obscene Books and Objects, and Lottery Offices
Section 294 BNS repeats Section 292 IPC but extends the deeming definition of obscenity to "display of any content in electronic form" and raises the fines (first conviction from two thousand to five thousand rupees; later convictions from five thousand to ten thousand rupees). Section 295 BNS protects a "child" (below eighteen years) instead of a person under twenty years. Section 297 BNS splits Section 294A IPC into two sub-sections and raises the fine for publishing lottery proposals from one thousand to five thousand rupees. Classification is unchanged.
Sections 299-300 IPC vs Sections 100-101 BNS — Culpable Homicide & Murder Definition
Section 100 BNS reproduces Section 299 IPC verbatim. BNS 101 carries over the four limbs of Section 300 IPC (an unlabelled first limb, then Secondly, Thirdly and Fourthly) as clauses (a)-(d), recasts the Exception 1 provisos as a proviso with items (a)-(c), and makes minor language changes while preserving all five exceptions.
Sections 326A and 326B IPC vs Section 124 BNS — Acid Attack
Section 124 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 brings Sections 326A and 326B IPC into one section. Sub-section (1) repeats Section 326A and adds a new limb, causing a person to be in a permanent vegetative state, with the same minimum of ten years extending to life and fine paid to the victim. Sub-section (2) repeats Section 326B (five to seven years and fine). Explanation 2 now also provides that a permanent vegetative state need not be irreversible. Both offences stay cognizable, non-bailable and triable by the Court of Session. The BNSS extends the woman-officer, disabled-victim and Magistrate-statement safeguards to acid attacks.
Sections 349–358 IPC vs Sections 128–136 BNS — Assault and Criminal Force
BNS Sections 128 to 136 re-enact IPC Sections 349 to 358 (other than Section 354 and Sections 354A to 354D, which moved to BNS Sections 74 to 78). The definitions of force, criminal force and assault are carried over with drafting edits. The terms of imprisonment are unchanged, but three fine caps rise: Section 131 (IPC 352) from five hundred to one thousand rupees, Section 135 (IPC 357) from one thousand to five thousand rupees, and Section 136 (IPC 358) from two hundred to one thousand rupees. The cognizable / non-cognizable split in the First Schedule is unchanged; the CrPC bail column for Sections 355 to 358 IPC cannot be traced because its Ditto chain runs into the 2013 rows for Sections 354 to 354D.
Sections 354A-354D IPC vs Sections 75-78 BNS — Sexual Harassment, Voyeurism, Stalking
BNS ss.75-78 carry forward IPC ss.354A-354D with the same punishments. Two drafting changes matter. BNS ss.76 (disrobing) and 77 (voyeurism) open with "Whoever" where IPC ss.354B-354C opened with "Any man who", while ss.75 and 78 still name the offender "A man" / "Any man". The BNSS First Schedule also reclassifies three offences: BNS s.75 becomes non-bailable and triable by the Court of Session (IPC s.354A was bailable and triable by any Magistrate), and BNS ss.76-77 become triable by the Court of Session (IPC ss.354B-354C were triable by any Magistrate). Stalking (s.78) keeps its classification.
Sections 359-369 IPC vs Sections 137-142 BNS — Kidnapping and Abduction
IPC Sections 359 to 369 are redistributed across BNS Sections 137 to 142, 87, 96 and 97. Kidnapping from lawful guardianship now protects every 'child' (below eighteen, Section 2(3) BNS) instead of boys under sixteen and girls under eighteen. Kidnapping or maiming a child for begging (Section 139, formerly 363A) now carries a ten-year minimum extending to life, and a twenty-year minimum for maiming. Procuration (Section 96) and importation (Section 141) are extended to boys. The other offences keep their words and punishments.
Sections 370–370A IPC vs Sections 143–144 BNS — Trafficking of Persons
BNS Sections 143 and 144 re-enact IPC Sections 370 and 370A. Section 143 keeps the act, means and purpose structure and all six punishment tiers, but adds 'beggary' to the forms of exploitation in Explanation 1 and uses 'child' (defined in Section 2(3) BNS as a person below eighteen) where Section 370 said 'minor'. Section 144 raises the maximum for engaging a trafficked child for sexual exploitation from seven to ten years, and for a trafficked person from five to seven years; the minimums are unchanged. Both remain cognizable, non-bailable and triable by the Court of Session.
Sections 372–373 IPC vs Sections 98–99 BNS — Selling and Buying a Child for Purposes of Prostitution
Sections 98 and 99 BNS replace Sections 372 and 373 IPC. Both now say "child" (defined in Section 2(3) BNS as any person below eighteen years) where the IPC said "person under the age of eighteen years". Selling a child (Section 98) keeps the maximum of ten years and fine. Buying a child (Section 99) now carries a minimum of seven years and a maximum of fourteen years, and fine, where Section 373 IPC allowed up to ten years and fine. Both remain cognizable, non-bailable and triable by the Court of Session.
Sections 375-376E IPC vs Sections 63-71 BNS — Rape and Related Sexual Offences
BNS Section 63 repeats the IPC Section 375 definition of rape but raises the age in Exception 2 (the marital exception) from fifteen to eighteen years. IPC 376 maps to BNS 64 and 65(1), 376A to 66, 376AB to 65(2), 376B to 67, 376C to 68, 376D, 376DA and 376DB to 70, and 376E to 71. Gang rape of a woman under eighteen now carries imprisonment for the remainder of natural life with fine, or death (Section 70(2)). Section 69 is a new offence of sexual intercourse by deceitful means or by a promise to marry made without any intention of fulfilling it.
Sections 378-382 IPC vs Sections 303-307 BNS — Theft, Snatching and Aggravated Theft
BNS Section 303 combines the IPC 378 definition and IPC 379 punishment of theft, adds rigorous imprisonment of one to five years and fine on a second or subsequent conviction, and provides community service for a first conviction where the stolen property is worth less than five thousand rupees and its value is returned or the property restored. Section 304 creates the offence of snatching. IPC 380, 381 and 382 become BNS 305, 306 and 307, and Section 305 extends the seven-year aggravation to theft of or from means of transport, of an idol or icon in a place of worship, and of Government or local-authority property.
Sections 390-402 IPC vs Sections 309-313 BNS — Robbery and Dacoity
BNS Sections 309 to 313 re-arrange IPC Sections 390 to 402: Section 309 carries IPC 390 and 392 to 394, Section 310 carries IPC 391, 395, 396, 399, 402 and 400, Sections 311 and 312 carry IPC 397 and 398, and Section 313 carries IPC 401. Punishments are carried over except dacoity with murder, where the alternative term of rigorous imprisonment becomes not less than ten years (Section 310(3)) instead of a term which may extend to ten years (IPC 396). The five-person threshold for dacoity is unchanged.
Sections 403–404 IPC vs Sections 314–315 BNS — Dishonest Misappropriation of Property
Section 314 BNS keeps the definition, Explanations and Illustrations of Section 403 IPC but changes the punishment from imprisonment up to two years, or fine, or both, to imprisonment of not less than six months and up to two years, and fine — a minimum term and a mandatory fine. Section 315 BNS repeats Section 404 IPC with one added word ("any property"); its punishments are unchanged. Classification is unchanged.
Sections 410-414 IPC vs Section 317 BNS — Stolen Property
BNS Section 317 brings IPC Sections 410 to 414 into one section with five sub-sections. The definition of 'stolen property' in Section 317(1) now includes property whose possession has been transferred by cheating, in addition to theft, extortion and robbery, criminal misappropriation and criminal breach of trust. The offences in Section 317(2) to (5) and their punishments are word for word those of Sections 411 to 414, and the classification and compounding are unchanged. The summary-trial value limit for receiving and assisting concealment rises from two thousand to twenty thousand rupees (Section 283 BNSS).
Sections 415-420 IPC vs Sections 318-319 BNS — Cheating and Cheating by Personation
BNS s.318 gathers IPC ss.415, 417, 418 and 420 into one graded section, and s.319 gathers IPC ss.416 and 419. The definitions, Explanations and Illustrations carry over. Three maxima rise: simple cheating from one to three years (318(2)), cheating a person whose interest the offender was bound to protect from three to five years (318(3)), and cheating by personation from three to five years (319(2)). The s.420 equivalent, 318(4), stays at seven years and fine. Classification and compounding are unchanged; the limitation period for simple cheating moves from one year to three.
Sections 421–424 IPC vs Sections 320–323 BNS — Fraudulent Deeds and Dispositions of Property
Sections 320 to 323 BNS repeat the offence descriptions in Sections 421 to 424 IPC word for word. The punishments change: Section 320 (removal or concealment of property to defeat creditors) adds a minimum of six months where imprisonment is imposed, and Sections 322 (deed of transfer with a false statement of consideration) and 323 (removal or concealment of property, or dishonest release of a claim) raise the maximum from two to three years. Section 321 is unchanged. Classification and compounding are unchanged.
Sections 463-474 IPC vs Sections 335-341 BNS — Forgery, False Documents and Counterfeit Seals
IPC s.464 becomes BNS s.335; IPC ss.463, 465, 468 and 469 become the four sub-sections of s.336; s.466 becomes s.337; s.467 becomes s.338; s.474 becomes s.339; ss.470-471 become s.340; ss.472-473 become s.341(1)-(2). Every carried-over punishment and classification is unchanged. Section 337 adds 'an identity document issued by Government including voter identity card or Aadhaar Card', reads 'Court' for 'Court of Justice' and drops 'baptism'. Section 341 adds two offences: possessing a seal, plate or instrument known to be counterfeit (341(3), three years and fine) and using one as genuine (341(4)).
Sections 489A–489E IPC vs Sections 178–182 BNS — Counterfeit Currency-Notes and Bank-Notes
BNS Sections 178 to 182 take over IPC Sections 489A to 489E and fold in the coin and Government stamp offences, so each section now covers coin, stamps, currency-notes and bank-notes together. Punishments for currency-note offences are unchanged except the fines in Section 182, which rise from one hundred to three hundred rupees and from two hundred to six hundred rupees. Section 179 adds importing, exporting and delivering; Section 181 adds mending and dies; Section 180 adds an Explanation that possession from a lawful source is not an offence. The BNSS First Schedule lists possession under Section 180 as non-bailable; Section 489C IPC was bailable.
Sections 493 and 496 IPC vs Sections 81 and 83 BNS — Cohabitation by Deceit and Fraudulent Marriage Ceremony
The operative words of Sections 493 and 496 IPC are repeated word for word in Sections 81 and 83 BNS, with the same punishments (up to ten years and fine; up to seven years and fine). Only the Section 81 heading changes ("a man" and "a belief" lose the article). The substantive change is in classification: Section 496 IPC was bailable under the CrPC First Schedule, while the BNSS First Schedule lists Section 83 BNS as non-bailable.
Sections 494-495 IPC vs Section 82 BNS — Bigamy
BNS Section 82 brings IPC Sections 494 and 495 into one section. Section 82(1) repeats Section 494, including both limbs of the Exception, with 'This section' becoming 'This sub-section'; Section 82(2) repeats Section 495, with 'the offence defined in the last preceding section' becoming 'the offence under sub-section (1)'. Punishments (up to seven years and fine; up to ten years and fine with concealment), classification (non-cognizable, bailable, Magistrate of the first class), compounding and the complaint-only rule for cognizance are carried over.
Sections 499-502 IPC vs Section 356 BNS — Defamation
BNS s.356 gathers IPC ss.499-502 into one section: the definition with its four Explanations, Illustrations and ten Exceptions in s.356(1), punishment in (2), printing or engraving in (3) and sale in (4). Punishment stays at simple imprisonment up to two years, or fine, or both, but s.356(2) adds 'or with community service' for defamation itself. The definition adds 'in any manner'; the Exceptions lose their titles and are numbered 1 to 10; Exceptions 4 and 5 read 'Court' for 'Court of Justice' and the Explanation to Exception 4 reads 'Magistrate' for 'Justice of the Peace'. Classification, compounding and the complaint requirement (BNSS s.222, formerly CrPC s.199) are unchanged in substance.
Sections 6–52A IPC vs Sections 2–3 BNS — General Explanations and Definitions
The IPC's Chapter II (Sections 6 to 52A) is split between BNS Section 2, a single numbered definitions clause with 39 entries, and BNS Section 3, which carries the rules of construction and joint liability in nine sub-sections. Most definitions carry over with 'denotes' or 'is' recast as 'means'. The substantive changes are: 'gender' now includes transgender; 'child' (below eighteen) is newly defined; 'document' includes electronic and digital record; 'movable property' drops the word 'corporeal'; the year and month follow the Gregorian (not British) calendar; property held by a person's 'spouse' (not 'wife') is in that person's possession; the 'public servant' definition drops 'juryman' and updates its Companies Act reference; 'harbour' loses its opening exception; a new clause (39) adopts definitions from the Information Technology Act, 2000 and the BNSS; and the IPC definitions of 'servant of Government', 'India' and 'section' are not carried over.
Sections 96–106 IPC vs Sections 34–44 BNS — Right of Private Defence
BNS Sections 34 to 44 re-enact IPC Sections 96 to 106 one for one. The one change of substance is in Section 41 BNS (IPC 103): the right of private defence of property extends to causing death against 'mischief by fire or any explosive substance' on a dwelling or storehouse, where the IPC said only 'mischief by fire'. 'House-breaking by night' in IPC 103 and 105 becomes 'house-breaking after sunset and before sunrise' in Sections 41 and 43 BNS — the meaning IPC 446 gave the defined term. The rest are drafting changes: renumbered cross-references, clauses lettered (a) onwards, Section 99 split into Section 37(1) and (2), Section 105 recast as clauses (a) to (e), and 'a person of unsound mind' in place of 'under the influence of madness' in an Illustration.
CrPC ↔ BNSS 88 mappings
Electronic Trials and Proceedings — BNSS Section 530 (New Provision)
Section 530 BNSS provides that all trials, inquiries and proceedings under the Sanhita, including issuance, service and execution of summons and warrant, examination of complainant and witnesses, recording of evidence in inquiries and trials, and all appellate or other proceedings, may be held in electronic mode, by electronic communication or audio-video electronic means. It is permissive and has no proviso or rule-making text of its own. The central CrPC had no general provision of this kind; it had stage-specific audio-video and electronic video linkage provisions inserted or substituted by Act 5 of 2009, and some States (Gujarat by Act 31 of 2017) added more.
Mandatory Forensic Investigation — BNSS Section 176(3) (New Provision)
Section 176(3) BNSS, a new sub-section in the provision that replaced Section 157 CrPC, requires the officer in charge of a police station, on information of an offence "made punishable for seven years or more", to cause a forensic expert to visit the crime scene to collect forensic evidence and to cause videography of the process on mobile phone or any other electronic device. The duty applies "from such date, as may be notified within a period of five years by the State Government". Its proviso says a State without the forensic facility "shall" notify the use of another State's facility until its own is developed. Section 157 CrPC had no equivalent; s.176(1)-(2) otherwise re-enact s.157 with a new audio-video option for recording a rape victim's statement and a fortnightly daily-diary requirement.
Section 102 CrPC vs Section 106 BNSS — Power of Police Officer to Seize Certain Property
Section 106 BNSS re-enacts Section 102 CrPC word for word — the power of any police officer to seize property alleged or suspected to have been stolen or found in suspicious circumstances, the duty to report the seizure forthwith to the officer in charge and to the Magistrate, custody on a bond, and auction of perishable property worth less than five hundred rupees — except that the proviso's cross-reference to sections 457 and 458 becomes sections 503 and 504. Two new provisions sit beside it: Section 105 requires the process of taking possession of property under Chapter VII to be recorded through audio-video electronic means, and Section 107 lets a court attach proceeds of crime on a police application.
Section 125 CrPC vs Section 144 BNSS — Maintenance of Wives, Children and Parents (CrPC 125-128)
Sections 144 to 147 BNSS re-enact Sections 125 to 128 CrPC as Chapter X (formerly Chapter IX). Two changes matter: the word "minor" is dropped from clause (b) of Section 144(1) and from its first proviso, together with the Explanation's definition of "minor"; and Section 145(1)(d) adds the district where the respondent's father or mother resides as a place to file. Interim maintenance, the sixty-day disposal target, payment from the date of the application if so ordered, enforcement by warrant with up to one month's imprisonment per unpaid month, the one-year limit for recovery applications, the wife's disqualifications and the alteration and cancellation rules are carried over.
Section 144 CrPC vs Section 163 BNSS — Prohibitory Orders in Urgent Cases of Nuisance or Apprehended Danger
Section 163 BNSS re-enacts Section 144 CrPC with the same seven sub-sections: the same Magistrates, the same grounds, ex parte orders in emergencies, orders against an individual, an area or the public generally, a two-month limit with a State Government extension of up to six months, and the right to apply for rescission. The only textual changes are the service cross-reference (section 134 becomes section 153), two dropped commas, and "by pleader" becoming "by an advocate". Disobeying such an order moves from Section 188 IPC to Section 223 BNS, where the maximum punishments rise to six months or Rs. 2,500 fine, and one year or Rs. 5,000 fine. Section 144A CrPC, whose commencement the India Code text records as "date yet to be notified", has no BNSS counterpart.
Section 154 CrPC vs Section 173 BNSS — First Information Report (FIR)
Section 173 BNSS keeps the Section 154 CrPC duty to record information of a cognizable offence and adds five things: information may be given "irrespective of the area where the offence is committed"; it may be given by electronic communication, taken on record once signed within three days; the free copy goes to "the informant or the victim"; a new sub-section (3) lets the officer, with a Deputy Superintendent's prior permission, hold a preliminary enquiry within fourteen days for offences punishable with three years or more but less than seven years; and the refusal remedy now ends with an application to the Magistrate. The woman-officer and disabled-informant provisos, including videography, were already in Section 154 CrPC (Act 13 of 2013) and are re-enacted with BNS section numbers.
Section 155 CrPC vs Section 174 BNSS — Information as to Non-Cognizable Cases and Investigation of Such Cases
Section 174 BNSS repeats Section 155 CrPC and adds one duty: the officer in charge must forward the daily diary report of all non-cognizable cases fortnightly to the Magistrate (s.174(1)(ii)). The register form is now prescribed "by rules"; sub-sections (2) to (4) — Magistrate's order to investigate, no arrest without warrant, and the mixed-case deeming rule — are word for word the same.
Section 156 CrPC vs Section 175 BNSS — Police Investigation and the Magistrate's Direction
Section 175 BNSS keeps the police power to investigate a cognizable case without a Magistrate's order (sub-section (1)) and the bar on questioning an investigation for want of territorial power (sub-section (2)). It adds a proviso letting the Superintendent of Police require a Deputy Superintendent to investigate, considering the nature and gravity of the offence. The Magistrate's power in Section 156(3) CrPC becomes Section 175(3), which now requires an application supported by an affidavit made under Section 173(4), such inquiry as the Magistrate thinks necessary, and the police officer's submission. A new sub-section (4) sets a procedure for complaints against a public servant arising in the discharge of official duties.
Section 160 CrPC vs Section 179 BNSS — Police Power to Require Attendance of Witnesses
Section 179 BNSS re-enacts Section 160 CrPC with three changes to the protective proviso. The upper age for a male person who cannot be required to attend anywhere other than where he resides falls from sixty-five to sixty; "a person with acute illness" is added to the protected list; and a new second proviso lets a protected person who is willing to attend at the police station be permitted to do so. The closing words change from "such male person or woman resides" to "such person resides". The power itself (written order, own or adjoining station, duty to attend) and the State's power to make rules for witnesses' expenses in sub-section (2) are unchanged.
Section 161 CrPC vs Section 180 BNSS — Examination of Witnesses by Police
Section 180 BNSS re-enacts Section 161 CrPC. Sub-sections (1) to (3) keep the same words: the power to examine orally, the duty to answer truly (except answers tending to expose the person to a criminal charge, penalty or forfeiture) and the separate, true record. Both provisos were already in Section 161(3) CrPC: optional audio-video recording (Act 5 of 2009) and recording of a woman victim's statement by a woman officer (Act 13 of 2013). The only substantive change is the offence list in the second proviso, now BNS sections 64-71, 74-79 and 124; sections 69 and 124 had no counterpart in the CrPC list. Linked changes sit in Sections 179 and 181 BNSS.
Section 162 CrPC vs Section 181 BNSS — Statements to Police and Their Use at Trial
Section 181 BNSS re-enacts Section 162 CrPC word for word apart from its heading and cross-references: contradiction is now in the manner provided by Section 148 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 (was Section 145 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872), and the saving clauses now refer to Section 26(a) BSA (dying declarations; was Section 32(1) IEA) and the proviso to Section 23(2) BSA (discovery; was Section 27 IEA). The rule against signing, the bar on use at the inquiry or trial of the offence under investigation, and the Explanation on omissions are unchanged. The one substantive change in the pair is in Section 180: the woman-officer proviso now lists BNS sections 64 to 71, 74 to 79 and 124.
Section 164 CrPC vs Section 183 BNSS — Recording of Confessions and Statements
Section 183 BNSS keeps the Section 164 CrPC procedure for recording confessions and statements before a Magistrate, including the caution, the voluntariness check, the bar on police custody for a person who declines, the memorandum, and the optional audio-video recording in the presence of the accused's advocate (in the CrPC since Act 5 of 2009). It changes who records, from "Any Metropolitan Magistrate or Judicial Magistrate" to "Any Magistrate of the District in which the information about commission of any offence has been registered". For listed BNS sexual offences and acid attack, it adds that the victim's statement shall, as far as practicable, be recorded by a woman Magistrate, and a new proviso that in offences punishable with ten years or more, life or death, the Magistrate shall record the statement of the witness brought by the police. A disabled person's statement is now recorded through audio-video electronic means, preferably by mobile phone.
Section 164A CrPC vs Section 184 BNSS — Medical Examination of the Victim of Rape
Section 184 BNSS re-enacts Section 164A CrPC almost word for word, but the registered medical practitioner must now forward the report to the investigating officer 'within a period of seven days' instead of 'without delay'. Cross-references move to Section 193(6)(a) and Section 51 BNSS, and the borrowed definition of 'registered medical practitioner' now rests on the National Medical Commission Act, 2019.
Section 165 CrPC vs Section 185 BNSS — Search by Police Officer
Section 185 BNSS re-enacts Section 165 CrPC with three changes: the grounds of belief must now be recorded 'in the case-diary', a new proviso to sub-section (2) requires the search to be 'recorded through audio-video electronic means preferably by mobile phone', and copies of the record must reach the nearest Magistrate 'forthwith, but not later than forty-eight hours'. Section 186 BNSS re-enacts Section 166 CrPC with only cross-references renumbered (sections 165 and 100 become 185 and 103). Section 105 BNSS separately requires the recording of a Section 185 search to be forwarded without delay to the District Magistrate, Sub-divisional Magistrate or Judicial Magistrate of the first class.
Section 167 CrPC vs Section 187 BNSS — Remand and Default Bail
Section 187 BNSS keeps the Section 167 CrPC remand scheme: a fifteen-day ceiling on custody authorised under sub-section (2), a total cap of ninety days (offences punishable with death, life or ten years or more) or sixty days (other offences), and release on default bail if the accused is prepared to and does furnish bail. It changes three things. The fifteen days may be authorised "in the whole, or in parts, at any time during the initial forty days or sixty days" of the detention period. The CrPC words "otherwise than in custody of the police" for detention beyond fifteen days are omitted. And the Magistrate must first consider "whether such person has not been released on bail or his bail has been cancelled". A new proviso limits places of detention to a police station, a prison or a place declared as prison. The CrPC proviso clauses and sub-section (2A) are renumbered as sub-sections (3) to (6).
Section 173 CrPC vs Section 193 BNSS — Police Report (Chargesheet)
Section 193 BNSS re-enacts Section 173 CrPC and adds: a two-month period for investigating listed BNS sexual offences and POCSO ss.4, 6, 8 and 10 (s.193(2)); forwarding of the report "including through electronic communication" (s.193(3)(i)); a new report particular on "the sequence of custody in case of electronic device" (clause (i)); a duty to inform the informant or victim of investigation progress within ninety days (s.193(3)(ii)), which is not a chargesheet deadline; a duty to submit indexed copies to the Magistrate for supply under s.230 (s.193(8)); and a ninety-day, Court-extendable period for further investigation during the trial (proviso to s.193(9)). The CrPC power of the officer to hand copies directly to the accused (s.173(7)) is not carried over.
Section 174 CrPC vs Section 194 BNSS — Police Inquest Report and Magistrate's Inquiry into Death (CrPC 174-176)
Sections 194 to 196 BNSS re-enact Sections 174 to 176 CrPC on inquests. Three changes stand out. The police inquest report must now be forwarded to the District or Sub-divisional Magistrate "within twenty-four hours" (Section 174(2) CrPC said "forthwith"). Section 195 BNSS adds provisos, absent from Section 175 CrPC, under which a male under fifteen or above sixty, a woman, a mentally or physically disabled person or a person with acute illness cannot be required to attend anywhere but their residence, while a willing person may attend and answer at the police station. In Section 196, the inquiry into a death, disappearance or alleged rape in custody (formerly Section 176(1A)) is now to be held by "the Magistrate" rather than "the Judicial Magistrate or the Metropolitan Magistrate"; sub-sections (1A) to (5) are renumbered (2) to (6). Section 194(3)'s list of cases for post-mortem referral and Section 196(1)'s mandatory Magistrate's inquiry are unchanged.
Section 190 CrPC vs Section 210 BNSS — Cognizance of Offences by Magistrate
Section 210 BNSS keeps the three routes to cognizance in Section 190 CrPC (complaint, police report, information or own knowledge) and the Chief Judicial Magistrate's power to empower second-class Magistrates. Clause (a) now expressly includes a complaint filed by a person authorised under any special law, and clause (b) a police report submitted in any mode including electronic mode. The heading reads 'Magistrate' for 'Magistrates'.
Section 197 CrPC vs Section 218 BNSS — Sanction for Prosecution of Public Servants
Section 218 BNSS re-enacts Section 197 CrPC. The core bar — no cognizance, without previous sanction, of an offence alleged against a Judge, Magistrate or protected public servant "while acting or purporting to act in the discharge of his official duty" — is unchanged, and the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act words (inserted in the CrPC by Act 1 of 2014) and the Article 356 proviso (added by Act 43 of 1991) are carried over. New: the second proviso to s.218(1), under which the Government must decide within one hundred and twenty days of receiving the request, failing which sanction is deemed accorded. Modified: the CrPC Explanation listing offences needing no sanction becomes a third proviso naming BNS ss.64, 65, 66, 68, 69, 70, 71, 74-79, 143, 199 and 200. Omitted: s.197(3B) CrPC.
Section 2 CrPC vs Section 2 BNSS — Definitions
Section 2 BNSS adds five definitions (audio-video electronic means, bail, bail bond, bond, electronic communication), drops four (India, metropolitan area, pleader, prescribed), adds an Explanation to 'investigation' making a special Act prevail over the Sanhita where they are inconsistent, and redefines 'victim' by dropping the words 'for which the accused person has been charged'. Undefined words now take their meaning from the Information Technology Act, 2000 and the BNS, not the IPC. The remaining definitions are identical or carry only drafting changes.
Section 200 CrPC vs Section 223 BNSS — Private Complaint Procedure
Section 223 BNSS keeps the Section 200 CrPC duty to examine the complainant and witnesses on oath and adds two things. A first proviso bars cognizance of an offence on a complaint "without giving the accused an opportunity of being heard", and a new sub-section (2) bars cognizance on a complaint against a public servant, for an offence alleged in the course of official functions or duties, unless the public servant is given an opportunity to make assertions and a report from his superior officer is received. The opening words now read "A Magistrate having jurisdiction while taking cognizance" and the making-over cross-reference moves from section 192 to section 212.
Section 204 CrPC vs Section 227 BNSS — Issue of Process
Section 227 BNSS repeats Section 204 CrPC: summons in a summons-case, warrant or summons in a warrant-case, a list of prosecution witnesses before process, a copy of a written complaint with the process, and dismissal for unpaid process-fees. A new proviso to sub-section (1) allows summons or warrants to be issued through electronic means; clause (1)(a) is reworded and the cross-reference in sub-section (5) moves from Section 87 to Section 90.
Section 207 CrPC vs Section 230 BNSS — Supply of Police Report and Documents to the Accused (CrPC 207-208)
Section 230 BNSS re-enacts Section 207 CrPC and adds an outer limit — copies must be furnished "without delay, and in no case beyond fourteen days from the date of production or appearance of the accused" — extends supply to "the victim (if represented by an advocate)", lets voluminous documents be furnished through electronic means, and deems electronic supply to be duly furnished. Section 231 BNSS re-enacts Section 208 CrPC with "forthwith" in place of "without delay" and the same electronic-supply proviso. Cross-references are renumbered and "pleader" becomes "advocate".
Section 260 CrPC vs Section 283 BNSS — Summary Trials (CrPC 260-265)
Section 283(1) BNSS makes summary trial of the listed offences mandatory ('shall try') for a Chief Judicial Magistrate or Magistrate of the first class, drops the Metropolitan Magistrate and the High Court's special empowerment, raises the value limit for theft and stolen-property offences from ₹2,000 to ₹20,000, and lists criminal intimidation under Section 351(3) BNS as well as 351(2). The general two-year class in Section 260(1)(i) CrPC is replaced by Section 283(2): the Magistrate may, after hearing the accused and for recorded reasons, try summarily any offence punishable up to three years, and no appeal lies against that decision. Sections 284 to 288 repeat Sections 261 to 265 with drafting changes only.
Section 304 CrPC vs Section 341 BNSS — Legal Aid to Accused at State Expense
Section 341(1) BNSS extends the court's duty to assign a defence advocate at State expense from 'a trial before the Court of Session' to 'a trial or appeal before a Court'. 'Pleader' becomes 'advocate' throughout; sub-sections (2) and (3), on High Court rules and State notifications, are otherwise carried over word for word.
Section 309 CrPC vs Section 346 BNSS — Adjournments and Day-to-Day Trial
Section 346 BNSS re-enacts Section 309 CrPC and adds one new limit: where circumstances are beyond a party's control, "not more than two adjournments may be granted by the Court after hearing the objections of the other party and for the reasons to be recorded in writing" (new clause (b) of the last proviso). The fifteen-day cap on remand during an adjourned trial now binds any "Court" (was "Magistrate"); "pleader" becomes "advocate"; and the two-month deadline for completing rape trials now lists BNS sections 64 to 68, 70 and 71, which includes section 71 (repeat offenders), whose IPC counterpart, section 376E, was not in the CrPC list. The day-to-day rule, the bar on adjourning without examining witnesses in attendance, and Explanations 1 and 2 are unchanged.
Section 311A CrPC vs Section 349 BNSS — Specimen Signatures, Finger Impressions and Voice Samples
Section 349 BNSS keeps the Section 311A CrPC power of a Magistrate of the first class to order any person, including an accused, to give specimens for an investigation or proceeding, and widens the list from "specimen signatures or handwriting" to "specimen signatures or finger impressions or handwriting or voice sample". The arrest proviso is retained word for word, and a new second proviso lets the Magistrate, for reasons recorded in writing, order any person to give the specimen or sample without being arrested. Section 349 is not an audio-video evidence provision; electronic-mode proceedings are in Section 530 BNSS.
Section 313 CrPC vs Section 351 BNSS — Examination of the Accused
Section 351 BNSS repeats Section 313 CrPC. The court may question the accused at any stage (clause (a)) and must question him generally on the case after the prosecution witnesses and before his defence (clause (b)), with the summons-case exemption where personal attendance has been dispensed with; no oath is administered; refusing to answer or answering falsely is not punishable; the answers may be considered in that trial and used in another trial for another offence; and the court may take the help of the prosecutor and defence counsel in preparing questions and may accept a written statement as sufficient compliance. The only textual changes are the heading ('Power to examine the accused' becomes 'Power to examine accused') and 'summons-case' becoming 'summons case' in the proviso.
Section 317 CrPC vs Section 355 BNSS — Inquiry and Trial in the Absence of the Accused
Section 355 BNSS repeats Section 317 CrPC, with 'advocate' for 'pleader' and 'Sanhita' for 'Code', and adds an Explanation: for the purpose of the section, personal attendance of the accused includes attendance through audio-video electronic means. A new, separate Section 356 BNSS provides for trial in absentia of a proclaimed offender.
Section 319 CrPC vs Section 358 BNSS — Summoning Additional Accused
Section 358 BNSS repeats Section 319 CrPC word for word, heading included. Where, in the course of an inquiry or trial, it appears from the evidence that a person not being the accused has committed an offence for which he could be tried together with the accused, the court may proceed against him; he may be arrested or summoned, or detained if already in court; and the proceedings against him must be commenced afresh with the witnesses re-heard. Supreme Court judgments construing Section 319, including the Constitution Bench rulings in Hardeep Singh (2014) and Sukhpal Singh Khaira (2022), construe the same words.
Section 320 CrPC vs Section 359 BNSS — Compounding of Offences
Section 359 BNSS keeps the structure of Section 320 CrPC: a first table of offences the victim may compound without the court's permission, a second table that needs the permission of the court where the prosecution is pending, and sub-sections (3) to (9) on abetment and joint liability, minors and deceased victims, committal and appeals, revision, previous convictions, effect of acquittal and the bar on any other compounding. The tables now list Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita sections; adultery (IPC 497) has no row; the two animal-mischief rows (IPC 428 and 429) become one row for BNS 325; no offence moves between the tables. Sub-section (3) now refers to BNS 3(5) and 190 in place of IPC 34 and 149, sub-section (4)(a) says 'a child or of unsound mind' in place of 'under the age of eighteen years or is an idiot or a lunatic', and sub-section (6) refers to revision under BNSS 442 in place of CrPC 401.
Section 321 CrPC vs Section 360 BNSS — Withdrawal from Prosecution
Section 360 BNSS repeats the withdrawal power of Section 321 CrPC — the Public Prosecutor or Assistant Public Prosecutor in charge may withdraw with the consent of the Court at any time before judgment — with two changes: a new second proviso that no Court shall allow withdrawal 'without giving an opportunity of being heard to the victim in the case', and clause (ii) of the Central Government proviso now covers an offence 'investigated under any Central Act' instead of one investigated by the Delhi Special Police Establishment.
Section 327 CrPC vs Section 366 BNSS — Court to be Open and In-Camera Trials
Section 366 BNSS repeats Section 327 CrPC: every criminal court is deemed an open court, the presiding officer may exclude the public or any person, rape trials must be in camera (as far as practicable before a woman Judge or Magistrate), and publication of in-camera proceedings needs the Court's previous permission. The in-camera list in sub-section (2) is re-anchored from IPC 376 to 376E to BNS 64 to 68, 70 and 71, and expanded to offences under Sections 4, 6, 8 and 10 of the POCSO Act, 2012.
Section 357 CrPC vs Section 395 BNSS — Victim Compensation (CrPC 357-357C)
Section 395 BNSS repeats Section 357 CrPC with a drafting correction in clause (1)(a) and an added comma in sub-section (2). Section 396(1) to (6) repeats Section 357A with the cross-reference to Section 357 renumbered, and Section 357B becomes Section 396(7), now listing BNS Sections 65, 70 and 124(1). Section 397 replaces Section 357C and extends free first-aid and treatment to victims of offences under Sections 4, 6, 8 and 10 of the POCSO Act, 2012.
Section 378 CrPC vs Section 419 BNSS — Appeal Against Acquittal (CrPC 372, 378)
Section 413 BNSS repeats Section 372 CrPC, including the 2009 proviso giving the victim a right to appeal against acquittal, conviction for a lesser offence or inadequate compensation; "Code" becomes "Sanhita" and the main clause reads "by this Sanhita or by any other law". Section 419 BNSS repeats Section 378 CrPC: the District Magistrate, State Government and Central Government routes, the High Court's leave, and the complainant's special leave with its six-month and sixty-day limits are unchanged. In Section 419(2) the named reference to the Delhi Special Police Establishment is dropped and the Central Government route now applies to a case investigated by any agency empowered to investigate under a Central Act other than the BNSS. On a reading of the text, the definition of victim in Section 2(1)(y) BNSS no longer ties the loss or injury to the act or omission for which the accused has been charged; no judgment read has considered the effect.
Section 389 CrPC vs Section 430 BNSS — Suspension of Sentence Pending Appeal
Section 430 BNSS re-enacts Section 389 CrPC with the same four sub-sections and both provisos. The changes are in the release wording: sub-section (1) now allows release 'on bail, or on his own bond or bail bond' (CrPC: 'on bail, or on his own bond'), and the first proviso, requiring the Public Prosecutor to be given an opportunity to show cause in writing where the offence is punishable with death, life imprisonment or at least ten years, now applies 'before releasing on his own bond or bail bond' (CrPC: 'before releasing on bail or on his own bond'). The heading drops 'the' before 'appeal'. The trial court's duty to release a convict who intends to appeal (sub-section (3)) and the exclusion of time on bail (sub-section (4)) are unchanged.
Section 397 CrPC vs Section 438 BNSS — Criminal Revision (CrPC 397-401)
Sections 438 to 442 BNSS re-enact Sections 397 to 401 CrPC in the same order and with the same operative words. The changes are drafting changes: an accused in confinement is released 'on his own bond or bail bond' instead of 'on bail or on his own bond' (Section 438(1)); cross-references are renumbered (dismissal of complaint 203 to 226, process fees 204(4) to 227(4), appellate powers 386, 389, 390, 391 to 427, 430, 431, 432, tender of pardon 307 to 344, equally divided Bench 392 to 433); 'pleader' becomes 'advocate' and 'Code' becomes 'Sanhita' in Section 442. Section 441 (Additional Sessions Judge) is word for word the same as Section 400 CrPC.
Section 41 CrPC vs Section 35 BNSS — Arrest Without Warrant
Section 35 BNSS re-enacts Section 41 CrPC (clauses relettered, cross-references renumbered) and absorbs Section 41A CrPC, the notice of appearance, as sub-sections (3) to (6) with the same operative words. New sub-section (7) bars arrest without the prior permission of an officer not below the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police where the offence is punishable with imprisonment of less than three years and the person is infirm or above sixty. The Second Schedule now carries a prescribed form for the Section 35(3) notice. Related changes sit in other sections: the designated police officer (s.37), the widened right to have a person informed (s.36(c)) and permissive handcuffing in listed cases (s.43(3)).
Section 436 CrPC vs Section 478 BNSS — Bail in Bailable Offences
Section 478 BNSS reproduces Section 436 CrPC: a person accused of a bailable offence "shall be released on bail", an indigent person unable to furnish surety shall be discharged on a bond, and inability to give bail bond within a week of arrest is a sufficient ground to presume indigence. The indigence proviso words and the Explanation were already in Section 436 (Act 25 of 2005, w.e.f. 23 June 2006). The changes are drafting ones: "bail bond" for "bail", "a bond" for "a bond without sureties", "bond or bail bond" for "bail-bond" in sub-section (2), and cross-references 116(3), 446A and 446 renumbered as 135(3), 492 and 491. The BNSS also defines "bail", "bail bond" and "bond" for the first time (s.2(1)(b), (d), (e)).
Section 436A CrPC vs Section 479 BNSS — Maximum Period an Undertrial Prisoner Can Be Detained
Section 479 BNSS keeps the rule of Section 436A CrPC that an undertrial who has been detained for up to one-half of the maximum term for the offence shall be released, subject to the court's power to order continued detention for recorded reasons, and the outer bar on detention beyond the maximum term. It changes five things: offences punishable with life imprisonment, not only death, are now excluded; release is "on bail" rather than on a personal bond; a first-time offender is to be released on bond after one-third of the maximum term; sub-section (2) bars release on bail where investigation, inquiry or trial in more than one offence or in multiple cases is pending, subject to the outer limit; and sub-section (3) requires the jail Superintendent to apply to the court when the half or one-third point is reached.
Section 437 CrPC vs Section 480 BNSS — Bail in Non-Bailable Offences
Section 480 BNSS keeps the Section 437 CrPC scheme for bail in non-bailable offences before the police or a court other than the High Court or Court of Session: the death-or-life bar in clause (i), the previous-conviction bar in clause (ii), the four provisos, the mandatory conditions in sub-section (3) and the sixty-day rule in sub-section (6). The changes are: the first proviso now covers "a child" (below eighteen, via BNSS s.2(2) and BNS s.2(3)) instead of a person "under the age of sixteen years"; the identification proviso adds "or for police custody beyond the first fifteen days"; clause (ii) reads "but less than seven years" where the CrPC text read "but not less than seven years"; sub-section (3) cites BNS Chapters VI, VII and XVII instead of IPC Chapters VI, XVI and XVII; and sub-sections (2) and (7) speak of "a bond" instead of "a bond without sureties", a term the BNSS now defines.
Section 438 CrPC vs Section 482 BNSS — Anticipatory Bail
Section 482 BNSS repeats Section 438 CrPC as it stood in force, with three changes: sub-section (2)(iv) refers to section 480(3) instead of section 437(3); "confirmity" (as printed in the CrPC) becomes "conformity" in sub-section (3); and the sub-section (4) exclusion now names BNS section 65 and section 70(2) instead of IPC sections 376(3), 376AB, 376DA and 376DB, which newly excludes gang rape of a woman aged sixteen or seventeen. The four statutory factors, interim-order procedure and sub-sections (1A)-(1B) in section 38 of the CrPC (Amendment) Act, 2005 were never brought into force (Sushila Aggarwal, 2020) and do not appear in section 482. The West Bengal and Orissa State amendments printed in the CrPC text have no counterpart in the BNSS as enacted.
Section 439 CrPC vs Section 483 BNSS — Special Bail Powers of High Court and Sessions Court
Section 483 BNSS carries forward Section 439 CrPC. The CrPC section already contained, from Act 22 of 2018, a second proviso requiring notice to the Public Prosecutor within fifteen days in specified rape cases and a sub-section (1A) making the informant's presence obligatory at the bail hearing. The BNSS changes are: sub-section (1)(a) cross-refers to section 480(3) instead of section 437(3); the rape-case provisions cite BNS section 65 and section 70(2) instead of IPC sections 376(3), 376AB, 376DA and 376DB, which extends them to gang rape of a woman aged sixteen or seventeen; sub-sections (1A) and (2) are renumbered (2) and (3); and the Assam State amendment (s.439-A) printed in the CrPC text has no counterpart in the BNSS as enacted.
Section 451 CrPC vs Section 497 BNSS — Custody and Disposal of Property (CrPC 451-452)
Section 497 BNSS extends Section 451 CrPC in two directions: the power now belongs to the Criminal Court or the Magistrate empowered to take cognizance or commit the case for trial, and it applies during investigation as well as inquiry or trial. It adds sub-sections (2) to (5): a statement of the property within fourteen days of its production, a photograph and if necessary a videograph on mobile phone or electronic media, use of both as evidence, and an order for disposal, destruction, confiscation or delivery within thirty days after the statement and photograph. Section 498 BNSS repeats Section 452 CrPC but applies when an investigation, inquiry or trial is concluded, adds the Magistrate, and renumbers the cross-reference to sections 503 to 505; the two-month hold on carrying out an order is unchanged.
Section 46 CrPC vs Section 43 BNSS — Arrest How Made
Section 43 BNSS re-enacts Section 46 CrPC — touch or confinement of the body, the proviso on arresting a woman, force against resistance or evasion, the limit on causing death, and the bar on arresting a woman between sunset and sunrise — and inserts a new sub-section (3) under which the police officer may, keeping in view the nature and gravity of the offence, use handcuffs while arresting, or producing before the court, a person in listed categories. Old sub-sections (3) and (4) become (4) and (5), and the night-arrest permission now comes from 'the Magistrate of the first class' instead of 'the Judicial Magistrate of the first class'.
Section 482 CrPC vs Section 528 BNSS — Inherent Powers of High Court
Section 528 BNSS repeats Section 482 CrPC word for word save that "Code" becomes "Sanhita" (twice); the heading is unchanged. It saves, rather than confers, the High Court's inherent powers to make orders necessary to give effect to any order under the Sanhita, to prevent abuse of the process of any Court, or otherwise to secure the ends of justice. The section does not mention quashing; the quashing jurisdiction and its limits come from Supreme Court judgments.
Section 483 CrPC vs Section 529 BNSS — Duty of the High Court to Exercise Continuous Superintendence over Courts
Section 529 BNSS extends the High Court's statutory duty of continuous superintendence from the Courts of Judicial Magistrates (Section 483 CrPC) to the Courts of Session and Courts of Judicial Magistrates subordinate to it, with the aim restated as expeditious and proper disposal of cases "by the Judges and Magistrates". The marginal heading drops the words 'of Judicial Magistrates'.
Section 484 CrPC vs Section 531 BNSS — Repeal and Savings
Section 531 BNSS repeals the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, as Section 484 CrPC had repealed the 1898 Code, and keeps the same three savings: pending appeals, applications, trials, inquiries and investigations continue under the repealed Code (531(2)(a)); notifications, orders, rules, sentences and appointments are deemed made under the corresponding BNSS provisions (531(2)(b)); and unused sanctions and consents carry over (531(2)(c)). Section 531(3) keeps the bar on reviving expired limitation periods. The CrPC's proviso on pending Chapter XVIII inquiries and its clause (d) on prosecutions of Rulers are not repeated, and 'prescribed' becomes 'specified' or 'provided by rules'.
Section 50 CrPC vs Section 47 BNSS — Grounds of Arrest and Informing a Relative (CrPC 50-50A)
Section 47 BNSS repeats Section 50 CrPC word for word: a person arrested without warrant must be told forthwith the full particulars of the offence or other grounds, and a person arrested for a bailable offence must be told of the right to bail and to arrange sureties. Section 48 BNSS re-enacts Section 50A CrPC and expands it: information about the arrest and the place of custody must now go 'also to the designated police officer in the district', as well as to a relative, friend or nominated person; the police-station register is now kept in the form the State Government 'may, by rules, provide'. The duties to tell the arrested person of this right and of the Magistrate to check compliance are unchanged.
Section 53 CrPC vs Section 51 BNSS — Medical Examination of the Accused (CrPC 53, 53A, 54)
Sections 51, 52 and 53 BNSS re-enact Sections 53, 53A and 54 CrPC. In Sections 51 and 52 the request for examination may now come from 'any police officer' instead of an officer 'not below the rank of sub-inspector'. Section 51 gains sub-section (3), requiring the practitioner to forward the report to the investigating officer 'without any delay', and its Explanation now defines 'registered medical practitioner' by reference to the National Medical Commission Act, 2019. Section 53 adds a proviso allowing 'one more examination' where the medical officer or practitioner considers it necessary. Section 52 otherwise changes only cross-references and drafting.
Section 82 CrPC vs Section 84 BNSS — Proclamation and Attachment (CrPC 82-86)
Sections 84 to 89 BNSS replace Sections 82 to 86 CrPC. The proclamation procedure, attachment, claims, release and appeal carry over almost word for word (as Sections 84, 85, 87, 88 and 89). Two changes matter: a court may now pronounce a person a proclaimed offender under Section 84(4) for any offence punishable with imprisonment of ten years or more, life or death under the BNS or any other law, instead of the closed list of nineteen IPC sections in Section 82(4) CrPC; and new Section 86 lets the court, on a written request from a police officer not below the rank of Superintendent of Police, start a request to a contracting State to identify, attach and forfeit a proclaimed person's property under Chapter VIII.
Section 91 CrPC vs Section 94 BNSS — Summons to Produce Documents
Section 94 BNSS re-enacts Section 91 CrPC and expands it. Sub-section (1) now reaches 'any document, electronic communication, including communication devices, which is likely to contain digital evidence or other thing', and the police officer's written order may be 'either in physical form or in electronic form'. Sub-section (3) now saves Sections 129 and 130 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 (formerly Sections 123 and 124 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872) and the Bankers' Books Evidence Act, 1891, and drops the references to telegrams and the telegraph authority. Sub-section (2) is unchanged save for a comma.
Section 98 CrPC vs Section 101 BNSS — Power to Compel Restoration of Abducted Females
Section 101 BNSS keeps the Magistrate's power, on a complaint on oath of the abduction or unlawful detention of a woman or female child for any unlawful purpose, to order immediate restoration and compel compliance by force. Two words change: 'female child under the age of eighteen years' becomes 'female child', and 'husband' is dropped from the persons to whom a female child may be restored, which now reads 'her parent, guardian or other person having the lawful charge of such child'. The neighbouring search power (CrPC 97, now BNSS 100) is unchanged apart from its number.
Sections 106–110 CrPC vs Sections 125–129 BNSS — Security for Keeping the Peace and for Good Behaviour
Sections 125 to 129 BNSS carry over the triggers and maximum periods of Sections 106 to 110 CrPC (three years on conviction, one year in other cases, three years for habitual offenders). Security is now a 'bond or bail bond' instead of a bond 'with or without sureties', and for habitual offenders a 'bail bond' instead of a bond 'with sureties'. Offence references now point to the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, so Section 127 refers to Section 152 BNS where Section 108 referred to sedition (Section 124A IPC), and the list of special Acts in Section 129 drops the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act, 1973 and the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954 and adds the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.
Sections 129–132 CrPC vs Sections 148–151 BNSS — Dispersal of Unlawful Assemblies
Section 149 BNSS gives the power to call in the armed forces to the District Magistrate or any other Executive Magistrate authorised by him who is present, where Section 130 CrPC gave it to the Executive Magistrate of the highest rank who is present. Section 148(2) lets the Magistrate or police officer require the assistance of 'any person' (Section 129(2) CrPC: 'any male person'). Section 150 repeats Section 131 word for word; Section 151 renumbers the cross-references of Section 132 and defines armed forces as the 'army', not the 'military', naval and air forces.
Sections 133–143 CrPC vs Sections 152–162 BNSS — Magistrate's Orders for Removal of Public Nuisance
Sections 152 to 162 BNSS carry over the public-nuisance procedure of Sections 133 to 143 CrPC. Three changes are substantive: Section 154 lets the appearance or hearing take place through audio-video conferencing; Section 157(3) adds a proviso that the proceedings shall be completed, as soon as possible, within ninety days, which may be extended for reasons recorded in writing to one hundred and twenty days; and Section 162 lets a Deputy Commissioner of Police empowered by the State Government or the District Magistrate prohibit repetition or continuance of a public nuisance. Disobedience now attracts Section 223 BNS in place of Section 188 IPC, with higher maximum penalties; the other changes are renumbered cross-references and drafting.
Sections 169–170 CrPC vs Sections 189–190 BNSS — Release or Forwarding of the Accused After Investigation
Section 189 BNSS re-enacts Section 169 CrPC, replacing 'a bond, with or without sureties' with 'a bond or bail bond'. Section 190 BNSS re-enacts Section 170 CrPC and adds a proviso: if the accused is not in custody, the police officer takes security for appearance, and the Magistrate shall not refuse to accept the report on the ground that the accused is not taken in custody. Sub-sections (2) to (4) of Section 170 carry over unchanged.
Sections 177–189 CrPC vs Sections 197–209 BNSS — Place of Inquiry and Trial
Sections 197 to 209 BNSS re-enact Chapter XIII of the CrPC section for section. Four changes are substantive: Section 201(1) drops the offences of 'being a thug' and 'murder committed by a thug'; Section 202 extends the cheating-by-correspondence rule to 'electronic communications'; Section 208 lets a person be dealt with where the offence 'is registered in India' as well as where he is found; and Section 209 allows depositions and exhibits from abroad 'either in physical form or in electronic form'. The rest are renumbered cross-references, punctuation and 'Code' → 'Sanhita'.
Sections 195, 198 and 198A CrPC vs Sections 215, 219 and 220 BNSS — Restrictions on Prosecution: Complaint by Public Servant, Court or Person Aggrieved
Section 215 BNSS keeps the Section 195 CrPC bar but lets a public servant authorised by the public servant concerned file the complaint (with a matching withdrawal power), and excludes BNS s.209 (non-appearance after proclamation) from the offences needing a public servant's complaint. Section 219 BNSS maps the marriage-offence bar to BNS ss.81-84, confines the husband-only rule to BNS s.84 and drops the proviso letting a person who had care of the woman complain. Section 220 BNSS repeats Section 198A with the reference changed to BNS s.85.
Sections 20–23 CrPC vs Sections 14–17 BNSS — Executive Magistrates
Section 15 BNSS lets the State Government appoint any police officer not below the rank of Superintendent of Police or equivalent as a Special Executive Magistrate, which Section 21 CrPC did not provide. Section 17 BNSS makes all Executive Magistrates, including the Additional District Magistrate, subordinate to the District Magistrate, and replaces the separate rule on allocating business to an Additional District Magistrate with 'distribution or allocation of business'. Section 14 drops metropolitan areas, and the saving for conferring Executive Magistrate powers on a Commissioner of Police is no longer limited to a metropolitan area. Section 16 changes only 'Code' to 'Sanhita'.
Sections 206–209 CrPC vs Sections 229–232 BNSS — Special Summons in Petty Offences and Commitment to the Court of Session
Section 229 BNSS raises the petty-offence ceiling in Section 206 CrPC from one thousand to five thousand rupees, both for the fine that may be specified in the special summons and for the definition of 'petty offence'. Section 232 BNSS repeats the committal duties in Section 209 CrPC and adds two provisos: committal proceedings are to be completed within ninety days from the date of taking cognizance, which the Magistrate may extend 'for a period not exceeding one hundred and eighty days' for recorded reasons, and applications made before the Magistrate in a Sessions-triable case are to be forwarded with the committal. Section 231 BNSS (formerly 208 CrPC) requires copies 'forthwith' and treats electronic supply as duly furnished.
Sections 218–224 CrPC vs Sections 241–247 BNSS — Joinder of Charges
The one substantive change is in Section 242 BNSS (formerly Section 219 CrPC): a person accused of offences of the same kind committed within twelve months may now be charged with and tried at one trial for 'any number of them not exceeding five', not three, and the word 'Three' is dropped from the heading. The rest of the joinder rules in Sections 241 and 243 to 247 BNSS repeat Sections 218 and 220 to 224 CrPC, with cross-references renumbered and the illustrations re-mapped to the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023; two adultery-based illustrations to Section 220 CrPC are replaced or dropped.
Sections 225–237 CrPC vs Sections 248–260 BNSS — Trial Before a Court of Session
Chapter XIX of the BNSS (Sections 248 to 260) keeps the order and most of the words of Chapter XVIII of the CrPC, but adds time limits and audio-video options: a discharge application within sixty days of commitment (Section 250(1)), a charge in an exclusively Sessions-triable case within sixty days of the first hearing on charge (Section 251(1)(b)), judgment 'as soon as possible, within a period of thirty days from the date of completion of arguments, which may be extended to a period of forty-five days for reasons to be recorded in writing' (Section 258(1)), audio-video recording of witness evidence and public-servant depositions (Section 254), and a compensation ceiling of five thousand rupees, up from one thousand, in defamation cases of high functionaries (Section 260(4)).
Sections 227 and 239 CrPC vs Sections 250 and 262 BNSS — Discharge
Both discharge provisions gain a new sub-section (1) setting a sixty-day window for the accused's discharge application: in a Sessions trial, from the date the case is committed under Section 232 BNSS (Section 250(1)); in a Magistrate's warrant case on a police report, from the date copies of documents are supplied under Section 230 BNSS (Section 262(1)). The test for discharge is unchanged: Section 250(2) repeats Section 227 CrPC word for word, and Section 262(2) repeats Section 239 CrPC with the police-report reference changed to Section 193 and the Magistrate's examination of the accused allowed 'either physically or through audio-video electronic means'. The neighbouring discharge provision in warrant cases not on a police report, Section 245 CrPC, is Section 268 BNSS with only its cross-reference renumbered.
Sections 238–250 CrPC vs Sections 261–273 BNSS — Trial of Warrant-Cases by Magistrates
Chapter XX of the BNSS (Sections 261 to 273) keeps the three-part structure of Chapter XIX of the CrPC but adds: a sixty-day window to apply for discharge from the supply of documents (Section 262(1)); a sixty-day limit to frame the charge from the first hearing on charge (Section 263(1)); audio-video examination of witnesses at a place notified by the State Government (Sections 265 and 266); a new Section 269(7) letting the Magistrate close prosecution evidence where witnesses cannot be secured for cross-examination; thirty days' time for an absent complainant before discharge (Section 272); and a two-thousand-rupee threshold, up from one hundred, for appealing a compensation order of a second-class Magistrate (Section 273(6)).
Sections 24–25A CrPC vs Sections 18–20 BNSS — Public Prosecutors, Assistant Public Prosecutors and the Directorate of Prosecution
BNSS Section 18 carries over Section 24 CrPC with a new proviso for Delhi and without the words 'or class of cases' in sub-section (2). Section 19 adds a fourteen-day notice to the State Government before a District Magistrate appoints an ad hoc Assistant Public Prosecutor and drops the free-standing bar on police officers in Section 25(2). Section 20 enlarges the Directorate of Prosecution: District Directorates and Assistant Directors are added, Director and Deputy Director eligibility moves from ten to fifteen years' practice (or service as a Sessions Judge), the Chief Justice's concurrence is dropped, and monitoring duties are assigned by the punishment for the offence.
Sections 251–259 CrPC vs Sections 274–282 BNSS — Trial of Summons-Cases by Magistrates
Chapter XXI of the BNSS (Sections 274 to 282) carries over Chapter XX of the CrPC (Sections 251 to 259) section for section. Two changes are substantive: a new proviso to Section 274 requires the Magistrate who considers the accusation groundless to release the accused, after recording reasons in writing, with the effect of discharge; and Section 279 requires the Magistrate to give the absent complainant 'thirty days' time' to be present before acquitting. The rest are renumbered cross-references, 'pleader' to 'advocate', and 'Code' to 'Sanhita'; Sections 275, 280 and 281 repeat Sections 252, 257 and 258 word for word.
Sections 265A–265L CrPC vs Sections 289–300 BNSS — Plea Bargaining
Chapter XXIII of the BNSS (Sections 289 to 300) carries over Chapter XXIA of the CrPC (Sections 265A to 265L) section for section. The substantive changes are in three sections: Section 289 drops 'below the age of fourteen years' from the child exclusion; Section 290 adds a filing window of 'thirty days from the date of framing of charge' and caps the time for a mutually satisfactory disposition at 'not exceeding sixty days'; and Section 293 adds lower fractions for a first-time offender (one-fourth of a minimum punishment, one-sixth of the punishment provided or extendable). Section 300 now refers to the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015. The other sections carry renumbered cross-references and drafting edits.
Sections 266–271 CrPC vs Sections 301–306 BNSS — Attendance of Persons Confined or Detained in Prisons
Chapter XXIV of the BNSS (Sections 301 to 306) carries over Chapter XXII of the CrPC (Sections 266 to 271). The one substantive change is that the power to direct that a person or class of persons shall not be removed from prison, which Section 268 CrPC gave to the State Government alone, now belongs under Section 303 BNSS to 'the State Government or the Central Government, as the case may be'; Section 304(d) extends the prison officer's duty to abstain to Central Government orders. The rest are renumbered cross-references and drafting edits, including 'other institution of a like nature' in Section 301.
Sections 272–283 CrPC vs Sections 307–318 BNSS — Mode of Taking and Recording Evidence
Part A of Chapter XXV of the BNSS (Sections 307 to 318) carries over Part A of Chapter XXIII of the CrPC (Sections 272 to 283). Two sections change in substance: Section 308 allows evidence to be taken, where the accused's attendance is dispensed with, in the presence of his advocate 'including through audio-video electronic means at the designated place to be notified by the State Government'; and Section 316 drops the separate memorandum procedure for a Metropolitan Magistrate and adds a proviso that an accused in custody examined through electronic communication must sign 'within seventy-two hours'. Sections 310, 311, 315, 317 and 318 repeat the CrPC text; the rest are renumbered cross-references and 'pleader' to 'advocate'.
Sections 29–31 CrPC vs Sections 23–25 BNSS — Sentencing Powers of Magistrates and Sentences for Several Offences at One Trial
BNSS Section 23 raises the fine a Magistrate of the first class may impose from ten thousand to fifty thousand rupees and a Magistrate of the second class from five thousand to ten thousand rupees, adds community service as a sentence both may pass, and drops the CrPC provision on Metropolitan Magistrates. BNSS Section 25 requires the Court, considering the gravity of offences, to order sentences for several offences at one trial to run concurrently or consecutively, in place of the CrPC default that they run one after the other unless the Court directs otherwise, and raises the overall cap on consecutive sentences from fourteen to twenty years.
Sections 291–294 CrPC vs Sections 326–330 BNSS — Medical Depositions, Expert Reports and Formal Proof of Documents
CrPC Sections 291, 291A, 292, 293 and 294 become BNSS Sections 326 to 330. Section 330 adds a thirty-day limit from supply of documents for admitting or denying their genuineness (relaxable for recorded reasons) and a proviso that no expert is to be called unless the expert's report is disputed; Section 328 requires the Mint or laboratory report to be under the hand of a gazetted officer; Section 329(4)(g) extends to any scientific expert specified or certified by the State Government or the Central Government.
Sections 3–11 and 194 CrPC vs Sections 3–9 and 214 BNSS — Classes and Constitution of Criminal Courts
The BNSS removes Metropolitan Magistrates, metropolitan areas and Assistant Sessions Judges. CrPC 8 (metropolitan areas) and CrPC 10(1) (subordination of Assistant Sessions Judges) have no counterpart; the classes of Criminal Courts in BNSS 6 no longer include Metropolitan Magistrates; the Court of Session in BNSS 8 has only Additional Sessions Judges, and absorbs CrPC 10(2)-(3) as sub-sections (7)-(8), with 'rules' becoming 'orders'. CrPC 3 is rewritten: BNSS 3(1) construes a reference in any law to an unqualified, first-class or second-class Magistrate as a Judicial Magistrate of that class. BNSS 214 drops the Assistant Sessions Judge from CrPC 194.
Sections 306–308 CrPC vs Sections 343–345 BNSS — Tender of Pardon to Accomplice (Approver)
BNSS Section 343 drops the Metropolitan Magistrate from the Magistrates who may tender a pardon (the BNSS has no Metropolitan Magistrates) and replaces the reference to Special Judges appointed under the Criminal Law Amendment Act, 1952 with Special Judges 'appointed under any other law for the time being in force'. Section 344 repeats Section 307 CrPC word for word; Section 345 repeats Section 308 CrPC with renumbered cross-references.
Sections 328–339 CrPC vs Sections 367–378 BNSS — Accused Persons of Unsound Mind
Chapter XXVII of the BNSS (Sections 367 to 378) carries over Chapter XXV of the CrPC (Sections 328 to 339) section for section. The substantive changes: at the inquiry stage the civil surgeon must refer the accused to a psychiatrist or clinical psychologist 'of Government hospital or Government medical college' (Section 367(2)); the Medical Board's faculty member must come from the nearest Government medical college (Sections 367 and 368); and fitness of a person detained in a public mental health establishment is certified by the Mental Health Review Board under the Mental Healthcare Act, 2017 instead of the asylum's visitors (Section 376). 'Mental retardation' becomes 'intellectual disability', 'lunatic asylum' becomes 'public mental health establishment', and the Mental Health Act, 1987 and Indian Lunacy Act, 1912 references become the Mental Healthcare Act, 2017.
Sections 340–352 CrPC vs Sections 379–391 BNSS — Offences Affecting the Administration of Justice
Chapter XXVIII of the BNSS (Sections 379 to 391) carries over Chapter XXVI of the CrPC (Sections 340 to 352) section for section. Three fines rise: summary trial for false evidence, 'five hundred rupees' to 'one thousand rupees' (Section 383); contempt in the view or presence of the Court, 'two hundred rupees' to 'one thousand rupees' (Section 384); and non-attendance of a summoned witness, 'one hundred rupees' to 'five hundred rupees' (Section 389). Section 384 now names Sections 210, 213, 214, 215 and 267 BNS instead of Sections 175, 178, 179, 180 and 228 IPC. Every other change is a renumbered cross-reference or a drafting correction; Section 385 still refers to 'a fine exceeding two hundred rupees'.
Sections 353–365 CrPC vs Sections 392–406 BNSS — The Judgment
Chapter XXIX of the BNSS (Sections 392 to 406) re-enacts Chapter XXVII of the CrPC (Sections 353 to 365) with five substantive changes: a judgment pronounced at a subsequent time must be pronounced 'not later than forty-five days'; the Court shall, as far as practicable, upload the judgment on its portal within seven days; an accused in custody may hear the judgment through audio-video electronic means; the translation rule now applies if 'either party' requires it; and the Prosecuting Officer may obtain a free certified copy for the Government. Section 355 CrPC (Metropolitan Magistrate's judgment) has no counterpart, Section 394 BNSS widens the notifying-address order to any offence punishable with three years or more, and Section 398 BNSS (witness protection scheme) is new.
Sections 374–376 CrPC vs Sections 415–417 BNSS — Appeals from Convictions, Guilty Pleas and Petty Cases
Sections 415 to 417 BNSS repeat the appeal routes of Sections 374 to 376 CrPC, with one substantive change: the bar on appeal from a High Court sentence in Section 417(a) now covers imprisonment 'not exceeding three months' (Section 376(a) CrPC: six months), so a High Court sentence of more than three and up to six months, passed alone or with fine, is no longer shielded from appeal. References to the Metropolitan Magistrate and the Assistant Sessions Judge are dropped, the six-month disposal rule for rape-sentence appeals now lists Sections 64 to 68, 70 and 71 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, and cross-references are renumbered.
Sections 39–40 CrPC vs Sections 33–34 BNSS — Duty of the Public and Village Officers to Report Offences
BNSS Sections 33 and 34 keep the structure of Sections 39 and 40 CrPC but redraw the offence lists by reference to the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Section 33 adds organised crime, petty organised crime and terrorist acts (BNS 111 to 113) and trafficking offences (BNS 143 and 144), and no longer lists the illegal-gratification offences of IPC 161 to 165A. Section 34 omits 'thug', re-draws the lists in clauses (c) and (e), and defines 'proclaimed offender' by reference to offences punishable with ten years or more, life or death instead of a list of IPC sections.
Sections 406–412 CrPC vs Sections 446–452 BNSS — Transfer of Criminal Cases
Chapter XXXIII of the BNSS (Sections 446 to 452) re-enacts Chapter XXXI of the CrPC (Sections 406 to 412). The grounds and routes for transfer are unchanged. What changes is the compensation for a frivolous or vexatious transfer application: the one-thousand-rupee cap is removed for the Supreme Court (Section 446(3)) and the High Court (Section 447(7)), and the Sessions Judge's cap rises from two hundred and fifty rupees to ten thousand rupees (Section 448(3)). The accused's bond becomes 'a bond or bail bond', the Assistant Sessions Judge disappears from Section 449, and cross-references are renumbered.
Sections 41C and 43 CrPC vs Sections 37 and 40 BNSS — Designated Police Officer, Control Rooms and Arrest by a Private Person
BNSS Section 37 keeps the police control rooms of Section 41C CrPC but replaces the district notice board and the State-level public database with a designated police officer, not below the rank of Assistant Sub-Inspector, in every district and police station, who maintains arrest information displayed prominently, including in digital mode. BNSS Section 40 requires a private person who arrests someone to hand him over 'without unnecessary delay, but within six hours from such arrest', and says the police officer 'shall take him in custody' where the CrPC said 're-arrest'.
Sections 432–435 CrPC vs Sections 473–477 BNSS — Suspension, Remission and Commutation of Sentences
Sections 473 to 477 BNSS re-enact Sections 432 to 435 CrPC (with Section 433A as Section 475) with three substantive changes. The commutation list in Section 474 is rewritten: death may be commuted only to imprisonment for life; life imprisonment to a term 'not less than seven years' (CrPC: 'not exceeding fourteen years or … fine'); a sentence of seven years or more to 'not less than three years'; a sentence of less than seven years to fine; rigorous to simple imprisonment. The jail-petition proviso to Section 473(5) now applies to any 'person' above eighteen, not only a 'male person'. Section 477(1) requires the State to act after 'concurrence' with the Central Government, not 'consultation', and no longer names the Delhi Special Police Establishment.
Sections 453–459 CrPC vs Sections 499–505 BNSS — Innocent Purchaser, Appeals, Destruction, Restoration of Possession and Unclaimed Seized Property
Sections 499 to 505 BNSS re-enact Sections 453 to 459 CrPC in the same order. Three changes are substantive: payment to an innocent purchaser must now be made "within six months from the date of such order" (Section 499); the proceeds of unclaimed property are dealt with as the State Government may, by rules, provide, instead of 'as may be prescribed' (Section 504(1)); and the value below which a Magistrate may sell seized property rises from 'less than five hundred rupees' to 'less than ten thousand rupees' (Section 505). Section 500 adds the words 'or Magistrate' to the orders it makes appealable; the rest are drafting edits and renumbered cross-references.
Sections 467-473 CrPC vs Sections 513-519 BNSS — Limitation for Taking Cognizance
Sections 513-519 BNSS re-enact Sections 467-473 CrPC with the same graded periods (six months for fine-only offences, one year for imprisonment up to one year, three years for imprisonment over one year and up to three years) and the same rules on commencement, exclusion of time, court closure, continuing offences and extension. Section 514 adds a new Explanation: for computing the period of limitation, the relevant date is the date of filing the complaint under section 223 or the date of recording of information under section 173. Drafting edits: "elsewhere in this Code" becomes "in this Sanhita" in s.514(1), two headings drop "the", and a comma becomes a semicolon in s.516(4)(a).
Sections 61–69 CrPC vs Sections 63–71 BNSS — Summons: Form, Service and Proof of Service
Sections 63 to 71 BNSS renumber Sections 61 to 69 CrPC one for one. A summons may now be issued in encrypted or other electronic form bearing the image of the Court's seal or a digital signature (s.63(ii)), served by electronic communication under State rules (s.64(2) proviso) and proved by an attested copy (s.70(3)); a witness summons may be sent by electronic communication (s.71(1)). Substituted service may be on 'some adult member' of the family instead of 'some adult male member' (s.66), and service on a company is on its Director, Manager, Secretary or other officer, with a new route for firms through a partner (s.65(2)). Sections 67 and 68 carry renumbered cross-references; Section 69 is identical to Section 67 CrPC.
Sections 78–81 CrPC vs Sections 80–83 BNSS — Executing a Warrant of Arrest Outside the Issuing Court's Jurisdiction
Sections 80 to 83 BNSS carry over Sections 78 to 81 CrPC. The one substantive change is new Section 82(2): on arresting a person under a warrant outside the issuing district, the police officer must forthwith inform the designated police officer in the district, and such officer of another district where the arrested person normally resides, of the arrest and the place of detention. Section 83 says 'bail bond' where Section 81 CrPC said 'bail', and cross-references are renumbered (71 to 73, 78 to 80, 81 to 83, 437 to 480). Section 81 BNSS is identical to Section 79 CrPC.
Sections 95–96 CrPC vs Sections 98–99 BNSS — Forfeiture of Publications and Challenge in the High Court
Section 98 BNSS keeps the State Government's power to forfeit a newspaper issue, book or document by notification stating the grounds of its opinion, but the triggering offences change from Sections 124A, 153A, 153B, 292, 293 and 295A IPC to Sections 152, 196, 197, 294, 295 and 299 BNS. Section 124A IPC (sedition) has no BNS successor in the list; its place is taken by Section 152 BNS (acts endangering sovereignty, unity and integrity of India), a differently worded offence. Section 99 BNSS repeats Section 96 CrPC — two months to apply to a Special Bench of the High Court — with renumbered cross-references.
Zero FIR — BNSS Section 173(1) (New Provision)
Section 173(1) BNSS, the successor of Section 154(1) CrPC, adds the words "irrespective of the area where the offence is committed" — the statutory basis of what is commonly called a Zero FIR, a term the Sanhita itself does not use — and allows information to be given orally or by electronic communication, signed within three days. The Sanhita sets out no transfer procedure and no fifteen-day transfer period for such information. Section 173(3) adds a discretionary preliminary enquiry, within fourteen days and with prior permission of an officer not below the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police, for offences punishable for three years or more but less than seven years; Section 173(4) extends the refusal remedy to an application to the Magistrate.
IEA ↔ BSA 29 mappings
Section 1 Evidence Act vs Section 1 BSA — Short Title, Application and Commencement
Section 1 BSA keeps the rule that the law of evidence applies to all judicial proceedings in or before any Court, including Courts-martial, but not to affidavits or to proceedings before an arbitrator. It drops the Evidence Act's exception for Courts-martial convened under the listed Army, Naval, Indian Navy (Discipline) and Air Force Acts and its statement that the Act "extends to the whole of India", and replaces the fixed commencement date of 1 September 1872 with commencement on a date appointed by Central Government notification — fixed at 1 July 2024 by S.O. 849(E) of 23 February 2024.
Section 101-105 Evidence Act vs Section 104-108 BSA — Burden of Proof
BSA ss.104-108 carry forward IEA ss.101-105 in the same order. BSA s.104 joins the two sentences of IEA s.101 into one ("...which he asserts must prove that those facts exist, and when a person..."). The main text of BSA ss.105-107 is word for word IEA ss.102-104; only illustration punctuation and layout change. BSA s.108 points to the General Exceptions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 instead of the Indian Penal Code, and its illustration (c) now cites BNS ss.117 and 122(2) instead of IPC ss.325 and 335. "Proved" is defined in the same words in IEA s.3 and BSA s.2(1)(j).
Section 106 Evidence Act vs Section 109 BSA — Burden of Proving Fact Especially Within Knowledge
Section 109 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 repeats Section 106 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 word for word — the rule that when a fact is especially within the knowledge of any person the burden of proving it is upon him — with the same two Illustrations (intention; railway ticket). Only the section number changes, as part of the renumbering of the burden-of-proof chapter (IEA 101-104 became BSA 104-107).
Section 112 IEA vs Section 116 BSA — Birth During Marriage, Conclusive Proof of Legitimacy
BSA Section 116 repeats IEA Section 112 word for word except that the birth is conclusive proof that the person is the "legitimate child" of the mother's husband, where the IEA said "legitimate son". The marriage condition, the 280-day window after dissolution and the only rebuttal (no access between the spouses) are unchanged.
Section 113A-113B Evidence Act vs Section 117-118 BSA — Presumption as to Abetment of Suicide and Dowry Death
IEA s.113A becomes BSA s.117 and IEA s.113B becomes BSA s.118: two separate sections, as before. Section 117 keeps "may presume" and the seven-year period; s.118 keeps "shall presume" and "soon before her death". The changes are drafting only: "court" becomes "Court", s.118 adds a comma after "soon before her death", and the Explanations now point to BNS s.86 (cruelty, formerly the Explanation to IPC s.498A) and BNS s.80 (dowry death, formerly IPC s.304B).
Section 114 Evidence Act vs Section 119 BSA — Court May Presume Existence of Certain Facts
BSA s.119 repeats IEA s.114 with drafting changes only. The section is split into sub-section (1) (the general power and illustrations (a)-(i)) and sub-section (2) (the ten qualifying facts, now numbered (i)-(x)). The illustrations lose their opening "that", and illustration (d) reads "such things or state of things" where the IEA has "states of things". A linked change sits in BSA s.138 (formerly IEA s.133), which now speaks of a conviction on the "corroborated" testimony of an accomplice.
Section 114A IEA vs Section 120 BSA — Presumption as to Absence of Consent in Certain Prosecutions for Rape
BSA Section 120 repeats IEA Section 114A with updated cross-references. The presumption now applies in a prosecution for rape under sub-section (2) of section 64 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, instead of clauses (a) to (n) of section 376(2) of the IPC, and the Explanation defines "sexual intercourse" by reference to the acts in BNS section 63 instead of clauses (a) to (d) of IPC section 375. The operative rule — where intercourse is proved and the woman states in evidence that she did not consent, the Court shall presume that she did not consent — is unchanged.
Section 133 Evidence Act vs Section 138 BSA — Accomplice Evidence (with IEA 114 Illustration (b) and BSA 119)
Section 138 BSA keeps the first limb of Section 133 IEA (an accomplice is a competent witness against an accused) but rewrites the second: the IEA said a conviction "is not illegal merely because it proceeds upon the uncorroborated testimony of an accomplice"; the BSA says a conviction "is not illegal if it proceeds upon the corroborated testimony of an accomplice". Illustration (b) to Section 119 BSA (formerly Illustration (b) to Section 114 IEA) — the court may presume an accomplice unworthy of credit unless corroborated in material particulars — is carried over unchanged, with its two qualifying examples now numbered clauses (ii) and (iii) of Section 119(2).
Section 162 IEA vs Section 165 BSA — Production of Documents
BSA Section 165 restates IEA Section 162 in three sub-sections and adds a new proviso: "no Court shall require any communication between the Ministers and the President of India to be produced before it". A translator who breaks a direction to keep a document's contents secret now commits an offence under Section 198 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 instead of Section 166 of the Indian Penal Code.
Section 165 IEA vs Section 168 BSA — Judge's Power to Put Questions or Order Production
Section 168 BSA keeps the Judge's power to question any witness or party and to order production of any document or thing, and both provisos. The words change: "in order to discover or to obtain proper proof" becomes "in order to discover or obtain proof", "any question he pleases" becomes "any question he considers necessary", "about any fact relevant or irrelevant" becomes "about any fact", "their agents" becomes "their representatives", and the cross-references become sections 127 to 136 and sections 151 or 152. Section 166 IEA (questions by jury or assessors) has no BSA counterpart.
Section 17-31 Evidence Act vs Section 15-25 BSA — Admissions and Confessions
The 16 IEA sections 17-31 (including s.22A) become 11 BSA sections, 15-25. IEA ss.24, 28 and 29 merge into BSA s.22, which adds "coercion" to inducement, threat or promise in the main rule and the first proviso. IEA ss.25, 26 and 27 become BSA s.23(1), s.23(2) and the proviso to s.23(2); the IEA Explanation on village headmen is dropped. IEA s.22A is not re-enacted: BSA s.20 speaks of "a document", which s.2(1)(d) defines to include electronic and digital records. BSA s.24 adds Explanation II, deeming a trial held in the absence of an absconding accused a joint trial. The admission provisions carry over with drafting and cross-reference edits.
Section 27 Evidence Act vs Proviso to Section 23(2) BSA — Discovery Statements
Section 27 of the Evidence Act is no longer a separate section: its text is now the proviso to Section 23(2) BSA, under the heading "Confession to police officer". Section 27 already opened "Provided that" and was already confined to information from an accused "in the custody of a police-officer", so the move does not narrow the rule. The text changes are drafting only: the comma after "Provided that" and the hyphen in "police-officer" go, and "the fact thereby discovered" becomes "the fact discovered".
Section 32 Evidence Act vs Section 26 BSA — Dying Declaration and Statements of Persons Who Cannot Be Called
Section 26 BSA carries over Section 32 of the Evidence Act with drafting changes only. The numbered cases (1) to (8) become clauses (a) to (h) without their marginal sub-headings, and the cross-reference "section 13, clause (a)" becomes "clause (a) of section 11". Illustrations are updated ("ravished" to "raped", "banya" to "business person", Calcutta to Nagpur, Bombay to Mumbai, London to Chennai). The dying-declaration clause, including the words making the statement relevant whether or not the maker expected death, was already in Section 32(1) and is now clause (a).
Section 45 Evidence Act vs Section 39 BSA — Expert Opinion
Section 39(1) BSA re-enacts Section 45 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 and adds the words "or any other field" after "science or art" in both places, so the opinion of a person specially skilled in any other field is also a relevant fact; the closing sentence becomes "relevant facts and such persons are called experts". Section 39(2) carries over Section 45A (inserted by Act 10 of 2009, s.52, w.e.f. 27-10-2009) on the opinion of the Examiner of Electronic Evidence referred to in Section 79A of the Information Technology Act, 2000; its Explanation that such an Examiner shall be an expert was already in Section 45A and changes only from "this section" to "this sub-section".
Section 6 IEA vs Section 4 BSA — Res Gestae: Facts Forming Part of the Same Transaction
Section 4 BSA carries over the res gestae rule of Section 6 of the Indian Evidence Act, but a fact may now be relevant because it is so connected with "a fact in issue or a relevant fact" as to form part of the same transaction; Section 6 IEA spoke only of "a fact in issue". The four illustrations are carried over with drafting changes ("by-standers" to "bystanders", "gaols" to "jails"), and the section now sits under a new group heading, "Closely connected facts".
Section 65A-65B Evidence Act vs Section 62-63 BSA — Admissibility of Electronic Records
Section 65A of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 becomes Section 62 BSA with only its cross-reference changed (s.65B to s.63). Section 65B becomes Section 63, which keeps the computer-output deeming rule, the four conditions and the certificate, but extends them to communication devices, semiconductor memory and information otherwise stored, recorded or copied in any electronic form; recasts sub-section (3) as five modes (standalone mode, computer system, computer network, computer resource, intermediary); and requires the sub-section (4) certificate to be submitted along with the electronic record at each instance it is submitted for admission, signed by the person in charge and an expert, in the form in the Schedule, whose Part A (party) and Part B (expert) both state hash values. Section 65B(5)(b) and the closing Explanation are not carried over.
Section 8 IEA vs Section 6 BSA — Motive, Preparation and Previous or Subsequent Conduct
BSA Section 6 repeats IEA Section 8 in substance. The first paragraph (motive and preparation) becomes sub-section (1) and the second (conduct) becomes sub-section (2), with a comma added after "any person". Explanation 1 reads "this Adhiniyam" for "this Act". The illustrations are modernised: "vakils" become "advocates", "the man who robbed B" becomes "the person who robbed B", "rupees 10,000" becomes "ten thousand rupees", illustration (j) asks whether A was "raped" rather than "ravished" and refers to the complainant as "A" rather than "she", and the cross-references now point to BSA Section 26(a) (dying declarations) and Section 160 (corroboration).
Section 9 IEA vs Section 7 BSA — Facts Necessary to Explain or Introduce Relevant Facts
Section 7 BSA carries over Section 9 of the Indian Evidence Act with the same five categories of relevant facts and the same six illustrations. The changes are drafting only: the heading now reads "fact in issue or relevant facts", "a" is added before "relevant fact" in the support-or-rebut clause, "any thing or person whose identity is relevant" becomes "anything, or person whose identity, is relevant", and Illustration (c) cross-refers to Section 6 (formerly Section 8) and reads "A had" for "he had".
Sections 115–117 IEA vs Sections 121–123 BSA — Estoppel, Tenant Estoppel and Estoppel of Acceptor, Bailee or Licensee
BSA Section 122 extends tenant estoppel: a tenant may not deny the landlord's title at the beginning of the tenancy "during the continuance of the tenancy or any time thereafter", where IEA Section 116 said only "during the continuance of the tenancy". BSA Section 121 repeats the general estoppel rule in IEA Section 115 word for word, and BSA Section 123 repeats IEA Section 117 with its Explanations renumbered.
Sections 121–132 IEA vs Sections 127–137 BSA — Privileged Communications and Witness Privileges
BSA Section 131 says a Magistrate, police officer or revenue officer cannot be compelled to say "when" he got information about an offence, where IEA Section 125 said "whence" (from where). Professional-communication privilege (IEA Sections 126-127) is merged into BSA Section 132 and now names only the "advocate"; Section 134 says "legal adviser" instead of "legal professional adviser". The marriage, State and official-communication privileges (BSA 128-130) are word for word the same.
Sections 145, 154 and 155 IEA vs Sections 148, 157 and 158 BSA — Hostile Witness, Previous Statements and Impeaching Credit
The three rules a court uses when a witness departs from an earlier statement carry over with their operative words intact. BSA Section 148 repeats IEA Section 145 word for word. BSA Section 157 repeats IEA Section 154 with "any questions" changed to "any question". BSA Section 158 repeats IEA Section 155 with clauses (1)-(3) relettered (a)-(c), and recasts illustration (b): the earlier statement used to contradict the witness now concerns what the dying man declared, not who gave the wound. The neighbouring rule on police statements, CrPC Section 162, is now BNSS Section 181, with its cross-references updated to the BSA.
Sections 24-26 Evidence Act vs Sections 22-23 BSA — Confessions to Police and in Police Custody
Section 22 BSA repeats Section 24 of the Evidence Act but adds "coercion" to inducement, threat or promise, and takes in Evidence Act ss.28 and 29 as its two provisos. Section 23(1) repeats s.25 with minor edits. Section 23(2) repeats s.26 with drafting changes ("while", "unless it is made", "proved against him") and without the s.26 Explanation on village headmen. Evidence Act s.27 becomes the proviso to s.23(2).
Sections 3-4 Evidence Act vs Section 2 BSA — Definitions (Proved, Document, Evidence, Presumptions)
Section 2 BSA gathers the Section 3 definitions and the three Section 4 terms (may presume, shall presume, conclusive proof) into clauses (a) to (l) of s.2(1). "Document" now "includes electronic and digital records", with a new Illustration (vi); "evidence" now covers "statements given electronically" and "electronic or digital records". Section 2(2) gives undefined words their meaning in the IT Act, 2000, the BNSS and the BNS, replacing a nine-term IT Act cross-reference. The IEA definition of "India" is not carried over, and one "fact" illustration is dropped.
Sections 34–41 IEA vs Sections 28–35 BSA — Statements in Special Circumstances and Judgments of Courts
Sections 28 to 35 BSA carry over Sections 34 to 41 of the Indian Evidence Act in the same order. Section 31 BSA (formerly 37) drops recitals in Acts of the United Kingdom Parliament, Provincial Acts, Crown Representative notifications and the London Gazette and Dominion gazettes, and adds a printed paper "or in electronic or digital form" purporting to be the Official Gazette. Section 32 (formerly 38) extends to law books and law reports "including in electronic or digital form". Section 35 (formerly 41) adds judgments of a competent "Tribunal" and is split into sub-sections. Sections 28 and 29 carry drafting changes only; Sections 30, 33 and 34 are identical.
Sections 56 and 57 Evidence Act vs Sections 51 and 52 BSA — Judicial Notice
Section 51 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 repeats Section 56 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872: no fact of which the Court will take judicial notice need be proved. Section 52 rewrites the thirteen-item list in Section 57 as twelve clauses in sub-section (1). It drops the United Kingdom Acts, Articles of War, the British Sovereign's accession and sign manual and the seals of which English Courts take notice; adds laws having extra-territorial operation, international treaties, agreements and conventions and decisions made by India at international bodies, and the seals of all Tribunals; and replaces 'territories under the dominion of' the Government of India with 'the territory of India'. The rule on books of reference and the Court's power to refuse becomes sub-section (2) with minor drafting changes.
Sections 62-65B Evidence Act vs Sections 57-63 BSA — Electronic Evidence Framework
BSA Sections 57-63 correspond to Evidence Act Sections 62-65B (62 to 57, 63 to 58, 64 to 59, 65 to 60, 65A to 62, 65B to 63), plus a new Section 61 ("Electronic or digital record"). Section 57 adds Explanations 4-7 on when an electronic or digital record is primary evidence; Section 58 adds clauses (vi)-(viii) (oral admissions, written admissions, evidence of a person skilled in examining numerous documents); Section 61 bars denial of admissibility on the ground that a record is electronic or digital, subject to Section 63; Section 63 extends Section 65B to communication devices, semiconductor memory and information otherwise stored, recorded or copied in any electronic form, lists five modes in sub-section (3), and requires the sub-section (4) certificate to be submitted at each instance, signed by the person in charge and an expert, in the Schedule form, whose Part A and Part B both call for hash values.
Sections 67–73A IEA vs Sections 65–73 BSA — Proof of Signature, Handwriting, Execution and Attestation
Sections 65 to 73 BSA carry over Sections 67 to 73A of the Indian Evidence Act, each renumbered one or two places down (IEA 67A becomes BSA 66; IEA 73A becomes BSA 73). The one substantive change is in Section 68 BSA (formerly 69): the words "or if the document purports to have been executed in the United Kingdom" are omitted, so the handwriting route now applies only where no attesting witness can be found. Section 72 (formerly 73) is split into three sub-sections, and Section 73 (formerly 73A) drops the Explanation defining "Controller". The rest are identical or drafting-only.
Sections 76–90A IEA vs Sections 75–93 BSA — Certified Copies, Official Documents and Presumptions as to Documents
Sections 75 to 93 BSA carry over Sections 76 to 90A of the Indian Evidence Act, except Section 82 (documents admissible in England or Ireland) and Section 88 (telegraphic messages), which have no BSA counterpart. Section 77 (formerly 78) replaces the Crown Representative, Her Majesty, Privy Council and London Gazette routes with the President, Governors and Union territory Administrators and the Official Gazette. Section 80 (formerly 81) drops the London Gazette, colonial gazettes and United Kingdom private Acts. Sections 81 and 85 add "electronic or digital" records and signatures. The proper-custody Explanation is rewritten: a document is in proper custody where it is "looked after by the person with whom such document is required to be kept", not where it "would naturally be".
Sections 91-92 IEA vs Sections 94-95 BSA — Exclusion of Oral by Documentary Evidence
Section 94 BSA repeats Section 91 of the Indian Evidence Act word for word, with both Exceptions, all three Explanations and Illustrations (a) to (e). Section 95 BSA keeps the rule of Section 92: "according to the last section" becomes "according to section 94", the six numbered provisos become unnumbered "Provided that / Provided further / Provided also" clauses (the qualification inside proviso (5) now stands as a separate proviso), and the illustrations are updated (Kolkata to Visakhapatnam, amounts in rupees in words, 2023 dates, "advocate" for "attorney").
51 thematic guides.
"Section 144" Prohibitory Orders Under the New Law: CrPC Section 144 vs BNSS Section 163
What happened to "Section 144" prohibitory orders under the new law. Compares CrPC Section 144 and 144A with BNSS Section 163, from the Bare Act text.
Accused Absconds: Proclamation, Attachment and Trial in Absence — Section 82 CrPC vs Sections 84 and 356 BNSS
What happens when an accused absconds in India: Section 82 CrPC's proclamation process vs Section 84 BNSS, and the wholly new trial-in-absentia power under Section 356 BNSS.
Arrest of Women and Senior Citizens: What Changed Under BNSS vs CrPC
How BNSS changed arrest, search, medical exam and witness-summons rules for women, the elderly and infirm persons in India, compared section by section to the CrPC.
Bail Provisions — Old CrPC vs New BNSS Comparison
CrPC bail chapter (ss.436-450) vs BNSS (ss.478-496): new definitions, Section 479 one-third release for first-time offenders, anticipatory bail exclusions, default bail under s.187(3), bonds and sureties.
Can Police Handcuff You? Section 43 BNSS vs Sections 46 and 49 CrPC
Handcuffing had no statutory basis under the CrPC. Section 43(3) BNSS now permits it for specific offence categories. Full text and comparison for India.
Claiming Maintenance for Wife, Children or Parents: Section 125 CrPC vs Section 144 BNSS
Compare CrPC Section 125-128 with BNSS Section 144-147 for maintenance of wife, children and parents in India — interim maintenance, 60-day timeline, enforcement.
Filing a Complaint Against a Public Servant: Section 175(4), 218 BNSS vs Section 156(3), 197 CrPC
How to get an investigation ordered against a public servant and the sanction bar before prosecution, under Section 175(4), 218 BNSS vs Section 156(3), 197 CrPC in India.
Getting a Seized Vehicle or Property Back: CrPC Section 451-459 vs BNSS Section 497-505
How to get a seized vehicle or property back under the new law. Compares CrPC Section 451-459 (interim custody, superdari) with BNSS Section 497-505.
Got a Summons by Email or WhatsApp? Electronic Service Under BNSS vs CrPC
Is a court summons received by email or another electronic mode valid in India? Section 63, 64, 70, 71 BNSS vs Section 61-69 CrPC on electronic service, explained.
In Jail Awaiting Trial? Maximum Detention Under Section 436A CrPC vs Section 479 BNSS
How long an undertrial can be detained in India before release: Section 436A CrPC's half-period rule vs Section 479 BNSS's new one-third rule for first-time offenders.
Mandatory Forensic Evidence Collection and Videography — BNSS New Provisions
How BNSS 2023 changes forensic investigation in India: s.176(3) forensic expert visit and videography, s.105 and s.185 search recording, s.51 DNA examination, s.349 voice samples, s.329 expert reports.
Mandatory Timelines for Investigation and Trial — BNSS New Provisions
Every BNSS 2023 time limit, tied to its sub-section and trigger: 24-hour production, 60/90-day custody, 14-day document supply, 60-day charge, two-adjournment cap, 45-day judgment, mercy petitions.
Mercy Petition and Commutation — Old CrPC vs New BNSS Comparison
BNSS s.472 sets a statutory mercy-petition timetable: 30 days to file, 60-day steps, 48-hour communication and a finality clause. Ss.473-477 rewrite the commutation ladder and require Central concurrence.
Offence Committed Before 1 July 2024: Does the IPC/CrPC/Evidence Act or the BNS/BNSS/BSA Apply?
Which law governs an offence committed before 1 July 2024 — FIR after, pending trial, appeal, or evidence. Reads BNSS s.531, BNS s.358, BSA s.170, Art 20(1).
Plea Bargaining — Old CrPC vs New BNSS Comparison
Plea bargaining in India under CrPC Chapter XXIA and BNSS Chapter XXIII: eligibility, the 30-day and 60-day limits, first-time offender sentence fractions, finality and the Supreme Court judgments that still matter.
Police at Your Door to Search Your Home: Videography Under BNSS vs CrPC
What changed when police search your home in India: the new mandatory audio-video recording under Section 105, 185 BNSS, compared with Section 93-100, 165-166 CrPC.
Police Sent You a Notice to Appear? Section 41A CrPC vs Section 35 BNSS
What a police notice to appear means under Section 35 BNSS, how it replaced Sections 41 and 41A CrPC, and the new age-60 safeguard against arrest in India.
Police Want to Attach Your Property as Proceeds of Crime? Section 107 BNSS Explained
Section 107 BNSS is a new general power to attach and forfeit proceeds of crime, with no direct CrPC equivalent. How it works alongside Section 106 BNSS and the reciprocal-arrangements chapter.
Police Won't Register Your FIR? The Remedy Ladder Under BNSS vs CrPC
What to do when police refuse to register an FIR in India: the written complaint to the SP and the Magistrate route under Section 173, 175 BNSS vs Section 154, 156 CrPC.
Seeking Discharge or Facing Charges? Deadlines Under Section 250-263 BNSS vs Section 227-240 CrPC
New 60-day deadlines to apply for discharge and to frame charges under Section 250, 251, 262 and 263 BNSS, replacing Sections 227, 228, 239 and 240 CrPC, in India.
Settling a Criminal Case: Which Offences Can Be Compounded — Section 320 CrPC vs Section 359 BNSS
Which criminal offences can be compromised in India under Section 359 BNSS vs Section 320 CrPC, what dropped out (adultery), what merged, and the compounding procedure.
The Accused Was Acquitted: Who Can Appeal, and When? Section 413 and 419 BNSS vs Section 372 and 378 CrPC
Who can appeal an acquittal in India under Section 419 BNSS, and the victim's own right to appeal under Section 413 BNSS - both carried over from CrPC Sections 378 and 372.
Victim Rights and Compensation — Old CrPC vs New BNSS Comparison
What the BNSS 2023 changed for victims: wider 'victim' definition, free FIR copy, 90-day progress report, case papers via an advocate, hearing before withdrawal, Section 396 compensation and witness protection.
When Can a Case Be Tried Summarily? Section 283 BNSS vs Section 260 CrPC
How BNSS Section 283 changed which cases must be tried summarily in India - theft threshold raised to Rs 20,000, discretionary limit raised to 3 years, replacing CrPC Section 260.
Witness Abroad or in Another State? Testimony by Video Under BNSS vs CrPC
How BNSS Sections 308, 316, 336 and 530 let witnesses and the accused appear by audio-video electronic means in India, and how this compares to CrPC Sections 273, 275 and 281.
Your Rights After Arrest: A Checklist Under BNSS vs CrPC
A step-by-step checklist of an arrested person's statutory rights in India under BNSS Sections 36-58, compared to the equivalent CrPC provisions they replaced.
Zero FIR — Mandatory Provisions Under BNSS vs CrPC
BNSS s.173 lets you report a cognizable offence at any police station 'irrespective of the area', orally or electronically. The Sanhita fixes no transfer deadline. Preliminary enquiry, free copy, SP and Magistrate remedies, BNS s.199(c).
A Witness Turns Hostile, an Accomplice Testifies: Evidence Act Sections 133, 145, 154, 155 vs the BSA
How Indian courts treat a hostile witness and accomplice testimony under Sections 138, 148, 157, 158 and 119 BSA, replacing Sections 133, 145, 154, 155 and 114 Evidence Act.
Digital Evidence — Old Evidence Act vs New BSA Comparison
How the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam changes electronic evidence: documents now include digital records, Section 57 primary-evidence Explanations, the two-part Section 63 certificate with hash values, presumptions and Supreme Court case law.
Only a Photocopy: Proving Documents and Secondary Evidence Under Sections 61-65 Evidence Act vs Sections 56-60 BSA
How to prove a document in court when you only have a photocopy — Sections 61-65 Evidence Act compared to Sections 56-60 BSA, primary vs secondary evidence, and notice to produce.
Proving WhatsApp Chats, Emails and Screenshots in Court: Section 65B Evidence Act vs Sections 61-63 BSA
How to prove WhatsApp chats, emails and screenshots in an Indian court under Sections 61-63 BSA, replacing Section 65A-65B Evidence Act, including the Schedule certificate.
A Fight Leaves Someone Injured: Section 115-117 BNS vs Section 319-325 IPC
A fight causes injury in India: hurt and grievous hurt under Section 114-118 BNS vs Section 319-325 IPC — higher fines, a shorter grievous-hurt threshold, new tiers.
Attempt to Commit Suicide: Section 309 IPC Dropped, Narrow Section 226 BNS Survives
Section 309 IPC's general attempt-to-suicide offence has no broad BNS successor. Section 226 BNS punishes only an attempt made to compel or restrain a public servant.
Bigamy, Adultery and Marriage Offences: Sections 493-498 IPC vs the BNS
How Sections 493-498A IPC on bigamy, fraudulent marriage and cruelty map to Sections 81-86 BNS in India, and why adultery (Section 497 IPC) has no BNS replacement.
Cheque Bounced? Section 138 NI Act Case, Section 318 BNS Cheating Case, or Both
A dishonoured cheque in India can mean a Section 138 NI Act complaint, a Section 318 BNS cheating case, or both. Notice periods, punishment, limitation explained.
Community Service as Punishment — New Provision in BNS
Community service is a new punishment under Section 4(f) BNS. The six offences that carry it (202, 209, 226, 303(2), 355, 356(2)), who can impose it under Section 23 BNSS, default imprisonment under Section 8, and Supreme Court judgments.
Fatal Road Accident and Hit-and-Run: Section 106 BNS vs Section 304A IPC
Fatal road accidents under Section 106 BNS vs Section 304A IPC in India: rash driving, the hit-and-run clause, and the S.O. 850(E) exception that left s.106(2) out of the 1 July 2024 commencement.
Mob Lynching — New BNS Section 103(2) Provision
BNS s.103(2) punishes each member of a group of five or more who, acting in concert, murder on grounds such as race, caste or community: death or life imprisonment and fine. Elements, s.117(4), s.190 and case law.
Offences Against Women — Old IPC vs New BNS Comparison
How the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 reorganises offences against women: rape and Section 69, harassment, voyeurism and stalking, dowry death, cruelty, marriage offences, acid attack and trafficking — with every classification change.
Offences Relating to Religion: Section 298-302 BNS vs Section 295-298 IPC
Damaging a place of worship, insulting religion, disturbing worship or wounding religious feelings in India: Section 298-302 BNS vs Section 295-298 IPC.
Organised Crime — New BNS Section 111 Provisions
Guide to organised crime under Section 111 and petty organised crime under Section 112 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023: definitions, the charge-sheet test, every punishment tier, classification, handcuffing and bail.
Posts That Promote Enmity Between Groups: Section 196 BNS vs Section 153A IPC
Content that promotes enmity between religious, caste or linguistic groups in India: Section 196 BNS vs Section 153A IPC, Section 197 BNS vs 153B, sanction rule.
Sedition Abolished — Section 124A IPC Removed, What Replaced It
IPC Section 124A (sedition) is gone. Compare it word by word with BNS Section 152, see what changed in BNS 196 and 197, the sanction, bail and FIR rules, and the Supreme Court judgments that still matter.
Sexual Intercourse on a False Promise of Marriage: Section 69 BNS, the New Offence
Section 69 BNS creates a standalone offence for sex by deceitful means or false promise of marriage in India. What the IPC text (Sections 375, 90) did and did not say.
Sexual Offences — Old IPC vs New BNS Comparison
Exact map of India's sexual offence provisions from IPC 375–376E and 228A to BNS 63–73: the marital exception raised to 18, the new Section 69, gang rape under 18 with death, IPC 377's omission, and the procedure.
Someone Enters or Occupies Your Property? Sections 329-334 BNS vs IPC 441-462
Someone enters, occupies or breaks into your property in India. Compare criminal trespass and house-trespass under BNS 329-334 with IPC 441-462, fines and terms.
Spreading False Statements or Rumours: Section 353 BNS vs Section 505 IPC
Making, publishing or circulating false statements, rumours or reports in India: Section 353 BNS vs Section 505 IPC, plus the new Section 197(1)(d) BNS offence.
Terrorist Act Definition — New BNS Section 113
Section 113 BNS brings a defined 'terrorist act' into India's general criminal code: the intent element, limbs (a) to (c), punishments in sub-sections (2) to (7), BNSS classification, bail, and the SP-rank choice of law.
Threatened for Money or With Harm? Sections 308, 351 BNS vs IPC 383-389, 503-507
Someone threatens you for money or with harm, including anonymously, in India. Compare extortion and criminal intimidation under BNS 308, 351 with IPC 383-507.
Victim of a "Digital Arrest" or Online Fraud Call? Sections 308, 318, 319 BNS vs IPC
A caller poses as police or customs and threatens arrest for money — which law applies. BNS 308, 318, 319 vs IPC extortion, cheating, personation, India.
What Happened to Section 377 IPC? Unnatural Offences Under the BNS
Section 377 IPC has no BNS successor. This guide reads the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita text on "unnatural lust" and the gender-specific sexual-offence sections.
Argue from the section, not from memory.
Three days, full access, no credit card. 245 mapping entries across IPC↔BNS, CrPC↔BNSS, and IEA↔BSA — each grounded in the bare-act text, the change classification, and the post-2024 rulings.