Section 190 CrPC vs Section 210 BNSS — Cognizance of Offences by Magistrate

In India, Section 210 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS) replaced Section 190 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (CrPC) on 1 July 2024. The three routes to a Magistrate's cognizance are unchanged; the new text expressly covers complaints by persons authorised under special laws and police reports submitted electronically.

At a glance

Section 210 is a procedural power, not an offence, so the First Schedule does not apply to it. Who may take cognizance is unchanged: any Magistrate of the first class, and a Magistrate of the second class specially empowered under sub-section (2). Section 210 sits in Chapter XV of the BNSS ("Conditions requisite for initiation of proceedings"), which was Chapter XIV of the CrPC.

What changed

• Expanded — clause (a): "upon receiving a complaint of facts which constitute such offence" becomes "upon receiving a complaint of facts, including any complaint filed by a person authorised under any special law, which constitutes such offence" ("constitute" also becomes "constitutes"). The Supreme Court read the new words as covering complaints by an authorised person under a special law (Parvinder Singh, para 24), in that case a complaint under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002.
• Expanded — clause (b): "upon a police report of such facts" becomes "upon a police report (submitted in any mode including electronic mode) of such facts". A "police report" is still a report forwarded by a police officer to a Magistrate, now under Section 193(3) BNSS (Section 2(1)(t)); it was Section 173(2) CrPC (Section 2(r)).
• Identical — clause (c) and sub-section (2).
• Minor edit — heading: "Magistrates" becomes "Magistrate".
• State amendments not carried: the India Code text of the CrPC prints a Maharashtra amendment (Act 33 of 2016) adding provisos to Section 190(1) that barred cognizance of an offence alleged against a present or former public servant while acting or purporting to act in the discharge of official duties, except with previous sanction under Section 197 CrPC or any other law, and deemed sanction granted if the authority did not decide within ninety days, and an Assam amendment (Act 3 of 1984) inserting "any Executive Magistrate". Section 210 BNSS, as enacted in the Gazette, contains neither. Whether either State has since amended Section 210 was not checked.

Statutory text (relevant extract)

Extract, Section 190(1) CrPC (repealed from 1 July 2024):

(a) upon receiving a complaint of facts which constitute such offence; (b) upon a police report of such facts;

Extract, Section 210(1) BNSS:

(1) Subject to the provisions of this Chapter, any Magistrate of the first class, and any Magistrate of the second class specially empowered in this behalf under sub-section (2), may take cognizance of any offence— (a) upon receiving a complaint of facts, including any complaint filed by a person authorised under any special law, which constitutes such offence; (b) upon a police report (submitted in any mode including electronic mode) of such facts; (c) upon information received from any person other than a police officer, or upon his own knowledge, that such offence has been committed.

How it works — the three routes and what follows

Route 1: complaint (Section 210(1)(a)). A "complaint" is any allegation made orally or in writing to a Magistrate, with a view to his taking action, that some person has committed an offence; it does not include a police report (Section 2(1)(h)). What follows is Chapter XVI BNSS:

1. Examination of the complainant and witnesses on oath (Section 223(1)); for a written complaint this is not needed where a public servant acting in his official duties or a court made it, or where the case is made over to another Magistrate under Section 212.
2. The first proviso to Section 223(1): "no cognizance of an offence shall be taken by the Magistrate without giving the accused an opportunity of being heard". For a complaint against a public servant about acts in the discharge of official duties, Section 223(2) also requires the public servant's version and a report from his superior officer before cognizance.
3. Postponement of process and an inquiry or investigation (Section 225), which is mandatory where the accused resides outside the Magistrate's jurisdiction.
4. Dismissal of the complaint with brief reasons (Section 226), or issue of process (Section 227).

Route 2: police report (Section 210(1)(b)). After investigation, the officer in charge forwards the report to the Magistrate (Section 193(3)). The Magistrate applies his mind to the facts in the report. On India Carat's reading of the same words, he is not bound by the police conclusion and may take cognizance even on a closure report.

Route 3: information or own knowledge (Section 210(1)(c)). Where cognizance is taken on this basis, Section 211 BNSS requires the accused to be told, before any evidence is taken, that he may have the case inquired into or tried by another Magistrate; if he objects, the case is transferred to a Magistrate specified by the Chief Judicial Magistrate.

Before cognizance — ordering investigation. A Magistrate "empowered under section 210" may order police investigation under Section 175(3), now only after considering an application supported by an affidavit under Section 173(4). Devarapalli treats this as a pre-cognizance power, distinct from investigation under Section 225 after cognizance. See the Section 156 page.

Neighbouring provisions: Section 212 (making over of cases, formerly Section 192), Section 213 (bar on Court of Session taking cognizance as a court of original jurisdiction without committal, formerly Section 193), and Sections 215 to 222 (restrictions on cognizance, such as sanction and complaint requirements, formerly Sections 195 to 199; sanction for public servants is now Section 218).

What this means in practice

For a complainant

• File the complaint with the facts constituting each offence (Section 210(1)(a)). Expect the accused to be heard before cognizance (Section 223(1), first proviso). An authorised officer under a special law files under the same clause.
• If the police file a closure report on your FIR, you can ask the Magistrate to take cognizance on the facts in the report or proceed on your complaint; India Carat recognises both courses.

For the accused and defence advocate

• In a complaint case filed on or after 1 July 2024, check whether you were heard before cognizance. Parvinder Singh holds that cognizance without that hearing is void and not a curable irregularity (paras 27, 37).
• If cognizance was taken under Section 210(1)(c), you may object to the same Magistrate continuing and seek transfer under Section 211.
• A second-class Magistrate can take cognizance only if specially empowered by the Chief Judicial Magistrate under Section 210(2), and only of offences within his competence to inquire into or try.

For the investigating officer and prosecutor

• Section 210(1)(b) now expressly contemplates a report "submitted in any mode including electronic mode". Mode of submission does not change what the report must contain under Section 193(3).

Judgments that still matter

Devarapalli Lakshminarayana Reddy & Ors. v. V. Narayana Reddy & Ors., [1976] Supp. S.C.R. 524 (1976 INSC 136) — 4 May 1976. R.S. Sarkaria, P.N. Shinghal and Jaswant Singh JJ. (judgment by Sarkaria J.) held that a Magistrate's power to order police investigation under Section 156(3) CrPC and his power to direct investigation under Section 202 are different powers operating at different stages: the first before cognizance, the second after it, when the Magistrate is in seisin of the case. On the meaning of cognizance, the Court said that when, "on receiving a complaint, the Magistrate applies his mind for the purposes of proceeding under s 200 and the succeeding sections in Chapter XV of the Code of 1973, he is said to have taken cognizance". The appeal was dismissed. The report shows no paragraph numbers. The provisions construed correspond to Sections 175(3), 210(1)(a) and 225 BNSS; Section 175(3) now adds the affidavit requirement.

India Carat Pvt. Ltd. v. State of Karnataka & Anr., [1989] 1 S.C.R. 718 (1989 INSC 61) — 15 February 1989. A three-Judge Bench (R.S. Pathak C.J., S. Natarajan and M.N. Venkatachaliah JJ.; judgment by Natarajan J.) held that on a police report a Magistrate "is entitled to take cognizance of an offence under Section 190(1)(b) of the Code even if the police report is to the effect that no case is made out against the accused". He may ignore the investigating officer's conclusion, apply his mind to the facts emerging from the investigation, and is not bound to follow Sections 200 and 202 CrPC, though he may. The appeal was allowed, the High Court's order set aside and the Magistrate's order restored. The report shows no paragraph numbers. Section 210(1)(b) BNSS repeats the operative words.

Parvinder Singh v. Directorate of Enforcement, [2026] 6 S.C.R. 486 (2026 INSC 519) — 19 May 2026. M.M. Sundresh and Nongmeikapam Kotiswar Singh JJ. (judgment by Sundresh J.) considered a PMLA complaint filed on 24 June 2024 on which cognizance was taken on 2 July 2024 without hearing the accused. The Court read Section 210(1)(a) as empowering the Magistrate to take cognizance in complaint cases, "including complaints which may be filed by an authorised person under any special law" (para 24). It held the first proviso to Section 223(1) substantive and mandatory, so that cognizance taken without compliance is void ab initio (para 27), and that "Taking cognizance is nothing but an application of judicial mind" (para 34). Directing a complaint to be numbered was a ministerial act, not an inquiry, so Section 531(2)(a) did not keep the case under the CrPC (paras 34, 36). The High Court judgment and the cognizance order were set aside and the Special Court was directed to hear the appellant from the stage of cognizance within eight weeks (paras 39-40).

Which law applies to your case

Section 531(2)(a) BNSS provides that an appeal, application, trial, inquiry or investigation pending immediately before 1 July 2024 is continued under the CrPC "as if this Sanhita had not come into force". Parvinder Singh applied that text to cognizance: where no inquiry had begun before 1 July 2024, cognizance taken after that date was governed by the BNSS (paras 29, 34, 36-37). Section 531(2)(b) deems powers conferred under the CrPC and in force on that date to have been conferred under the corresponding BNSS provisions; on a reading of that text, an empowerment of a second-class Magistrate under Section 190(2) CrPC continues under Section 210(2). See which law applies to an offence before 1 July 2024.

Frequently asked questions

What is the BNSS equivalent of Section 190 CrPC? Section 210 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 replaces Section 190 CrPC. Any Magistrate of the first class, and a Magistrate of the second class specially empowered by the Chief Judicial Magistrate, may take cognizance of an offence on a complaint, on a police report, or on information from a person other than a police officer or his own knowledge (Section 210(1)(a) to (c)).

What changed in Section 210 BNSS compared with Section 190 CrPC? Two clauses were expanded. Section 210(1)(a) now expressly covers a complaint 'filed by a person authorised under any special law', and Section 210(1)(b) a police report 'submitted in any mode including electronic mode'. Clause (c) and sub-section (2) are word for word the same, and the heading now reads 'Magistrate' instead of 'Magistrates'.

What does taking cognizance mean? Neither Code defines it. In Devarapalli Lakshminarayana Reddy v. V. Narayana Reddy (1976 INSC 136) the Supreme Court said that when a Magistrate, on receiving a complaint, applies his mind for the purpose of proceeding under Section 200 CrPC and the following sections, he takes cognizance; and in Parvinder Singh v. Directorate of Enforcement (2026 INSC 519, para 34) it said that taking cognizance 'is nothing but an application of judicial mind'.

Can a Magistrate take cognizance if the police file a closure report? Yes. In India Carat v. State of Karnataka (1989 INSC 61) the Supreme Court held that on a police report a Magistrate may take cognizance under Section 190(1)(b) CrPC even if the report says no case is made out, because he is not bound by the investigating officer's opinion. Section 210(1)(b) BNSS repeats the operative words, so on a reading of the text the same power exists under the BNSS.

Must the accused be heard before a Magistrate takes cognizance? On a complaint, yes. The first proviso to Section 223(1) BNSS says that no cognizance of an offence shall be taken by the Magistrate without giving the accused an opportunity of being heard; Section 200 CrPC had no such proviso. In Parvinder Singh (2026 INSC 519, para 27) the Supreme Court held the proviso mandatory and cognizance taken without the hearing void. Section 210 itself contains no hearing requirement for police reports.

Can a Sessions Court take cognizance directly? Not as a court of original jurisdiction, unless the BNSS or another law expressly provides otherwise. Section 213 BNSS, which replaces Section 193 CrPC, requires the case to have been committed to it by a Magistrate.

Which law applies to cognizance of a complaint filed before 1 July 2024? Section 531(2)(a) BNSS continues under the CrPC any appeal, application, trial, inquiry or investigation pending immediately before 1 July 2024. In Parvinder Singh (2026 INSC 519, paras 34 and 36-37) the Supreme Court held that merely numbering a complaint is not an inquiry, so in that case, where the complaint was filed on 24 June 2024 and cognizance was taken on 2 July 2024, the BNSS applied, including the hearing required by Section 223(1).

Related

• Section 200 CrPC vs Section 223 BNSS — private complaint
• Section 156 CrPC vs Section 175 BNSS — police investigation and Magistrate's direction
• Section 204 CrPC vs Section 227 BNSS — issue of process
• Section 197 CrPC vs Section 218 BNSS — sanction for prosecution
• Section 173 CrPC vs Section 193 BNSS — police report
• CrPC to BNSS master table
• Sections 177–189 CrPC vs Sections 197–209 BNSS — Place of Inquiry and Trial

Sources

• Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (Gazette text): Sections 2(1)(h), 2(1)(t), 175(3)-(4), 210, 211, 213, 223, 225, 226, 227 and 531.
• Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (India Code text): Sections 2(d), 2(r), 190 with the Maharashtra and Assam amendments, and 191.
• Judgments read in full text: Devarapalli Lakshminarayana Reddy v. V. Narayana Reddy (S_1976_1_524_531_EN.md); India Carat Pvt. Ltd. v. State of Karnataka (1989_1_718_729_EN.md); Parvinder Singh v. Directorate of Enforcement (2026_6_486_508_EN.md).

This page explains the statutory text and the judgments cited as they stand. It is not legal advice; for a specific case, consult an advocate.