SIAC - II

PROJECT

Submitted By :
Submitted To: Jahanvi Gupta
Ms. Shivali 22SL4021
3rd Semester
School of Law
MVN University
A Brief Comparative Overview
of
Indian Penal Code, 1862
&
Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023
 About IPC, 1862
● The Indian Penal Code was enacted in 1860 and came into force on 1st January,
1862.
● It was drafted by Lord Thomas Babington Macaulay upon the recommendations of
the 1st Law commission established in 1834 under the Charter Act of 1833.
● It was the British era when this act was introduced, enacted and commenced.
● The act has been amended various times as to meet the requirements of the changing
Indian Diaspora.
● This act came into force in Jammu and Kashmir on 31st October, 2019 by virtue of
Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019.
 About Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023
● The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 was introduced in Lok Sabha on August 11,
2023. The Bill repeals the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (IPC).
● Several Parts of the IPC have been retained, some have been modified and some have
been added.
● Objectives of introducing a new bill:
(a) To overcome the limitations imposed by the old provisions.
(b) To update criminal laws according to changing Indian Diaspora.
● The Bill aims to strengthen the current framework of the criminal laws in India and
make the justice system more effective.
 Sedition
IPC under Sec-124 A defines sedition as bringing or attempting to bring hatred or
contempt, or exciting disaffection towards the government. It is punishable with
imprisonment term between three years and life imprisonment, and/or a fine. The BNS
removes this offence.

It instead penalises the following under Sec-150 of the new bill:

(i) exciting or attempting to excite secession, armed rebellion, or subversive activities,
(ii) encouraging feelings of separatist activities, or
(iii) endangering sovereignty or unity and integrity of India.

These offences may involve exchange of words or signs, electronic communication, or use
of financial means. These will be punishable with imprisonment of up to seven years or
life imprisonment, and a fine.
 Sedition

● Words “disaffection towards the Government established by law in India” have been
removed from the old Section 124A of IPC.
● It directly targets secessionism, separatism, and a call for armed rebellion – words
like “contempt” or “hatred” against the Government of India removed.
● It also includes “electronic communication” and “use of financial means” as tools for
perpetuating an act “endangering sovereignty unity and integrity of India.”
● Earlier sedition law required very harsh words and some action like an example of
uprising against the country. Under Section 150, merely words by themselves will
attract the charge of having participated in anti-national activities.
 Will the new BNS apply to old/ongoing cases of
It shall not affect Sedition?
(a) The previous operation of the Code so repealed or anything duly done or suffered thereunder

(b) Any right, privilege, obligation or liability acquired, accrued or incurred under the Code so
repealed

(c) Any penalty, or punishment incurred in respect of any offences committed against the Code so
repealed

(d) Any investigation or remedy in respect of any such penalty, or punishment;

(e) Any proceeding, investigation or remedy in respect of any such penalty or punishment as
aforesaid, and any such proceeding or remedy may be instituted, continued or enforced, and any such
penalty may be imposed as if that Code had not been repealed.
 Terrorism
The Bill defines terrorism under Clause- 111 as an act that intends to threaten
the unity, integrity, and security of the country, to intimidate the general
public or disturb public order.

Terrorist acts include:

(i) using firearms, bombs, or hazardous substances (biological or chemical)
to cause death, danger to life, or spread a message of fear,
(ii) destroying property or disrupting essential services, and
(iii) activities included in the treaties listed in the Second Schedule of the
Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 such as unlawful seizure of
aircraft or taking of hostages.
Punishment for attempting or committing terrorism includes:

(i) death or life imprisonment, where the offence has resulted in death of any
person,
(ii) imprisonment term between five years and life in other cases. An
offender will also be liable to a fine of at least five lakh rupees.

The Bill also penalises conspiring, organising, or assisting in preparation of

any terrorist act with an imprisonment term between five years and life
imprisonment, and a fine of at least five lakh rupees.
 Organised Crime

The Bill defines organised crime as:

(i) a continuing unlawful activity such as kidnapping, extortion, contract

killing, land grabbing, financial scams, and cybercrime,
(ii) carried out by use of violence, intimidation, or other unlawful means,
(iii) to obtain material or financial benefit, and
(iv) carried out by individuals acting singly or jointly, as members of or on
behalf of a crime syndicate.
Attempting or committing organised crime will be punishable with:

(i) death or life imprisonment, where the offence results in death of any
person, and
(ii) imprisonment term between five years and life, in other cases. The
offender will also be liable to pay a fine.
 Petty Organised Crime

The Bill makes attempting or committing petty organised crime punishable

with imprisonment between one and seven years, and a fine. Petty organised
crimes are those which cause general feelings of insecurity among citizens,
and are committed by organised criminal groups/gangs. These include
organised pick pocketing, snatching, and theft.
Murder by a group of persons on grounds of caste or
The Bill specifies separate penaltyrace
for murder committed by five or more
people on specified grounds. These include race, caste, sex, place of
birth, language, or personal belief. Each offender will be punishable
with imprisonment between seven years and life, or death. It will also
attract a fine.

Death Penalty for Gang Rape of Minor

IPC allows death penalty for gang rape of women below 12 years of age.
The Bill allows death penalty for gang rape of women below 18 years of
age.
 Sexual Intercourse by Deceitful Means
The Bill penalises the act of sexual intercourse with a woman (not amounting to rape)
through deceitful means or a promise of marriage without intending to fulfil it. It
will be punishable with simple or rigorous imprisonment up to 10 years, and a fine.

This includes rape with the fake promise to marry. After various conflicting High
Court judgments on the applicability of s. 90, IPC to rape under false promise to
marry, 33 the position was clarified by the Supreme Court in Uday v. State of
Karnataka (2003). 34 The Court held that whether false promise to marry amounts to
rape must be decided on a case-by-case basis, depending on whether (a) consent was
taken under a false promise of marriage with no intention of being fulfilled, and (b)
the alleged offender believed that consent was given on the basis of the false promise.
Broadening the scope of offences covered by the
code.
Snatching Mob-lynching

Addition of Separate provision

Snatching under Sec- for mob-lynching
302 of the BNS, added under Sec-
2023 101(2) punishable
wih upto 7 years of
imprisonment, or
even death penalty.
 Some Positive changes!
The terms used for denoting person with mental disability has been changed
from ‘lunatic person’, or ‘person of unsound mind’ to ‘person with mental
illness’ and ‘person having intellectual disability’.

Intercourse with boys under the age of 18 years made punishable, thus
making the criminal law more inclusive.

Adultery (Earlier Sec-497), although already decriminalized as an offence

has been deleted from the offences in the new code.

Similarly, unnatural sexual intercourse (Earlier Sec-377) has also been

removed as an offence under the new provisions.
 Community Service as a way of Punishment!
Community Service has been recognised as a form of punishment in many
law systems around the world, so its inclusion as one of the punishments is a
welcome step.

Here are some of the petty offences covered under the ambit of Community
Service:
● Defamation
● Public Servant unlawfully engaging in trade
● Non-Appearance in response to a proclamation, etc.
 Life Imprisonment until death!
Earlier, the punishment of life imprisonment usually meant fourteen years,
but the new bill has changed that to literal meaning of life imprisonment, that
is, the person is to be imprisoned for the duration of his remaining life.

As to whether a whole life sentence can restrict the executive powers of

remission, the Supreme Court in Shatrughna Baban Meshram v. State of
Maharashtra [(2021) 1 SCC 596]opined that the statutory prescription of a
life sentence that shall mean the remainder of a person’s life can “certainly
restrain” such powers.
 Age of consent of married woman!
The age of consent has been changed from 15 years to 18 years, it is a
welcome change towards women empowerment.

The change in age of consent seeks to give legislative effect to the Supreme
Court’s judgment in Independent Thought v. Union of India (2017), where
the marital rape exception exception was read down to the extent that it
allowed sexual intercourse between a man and his minor wife over the age of
15 years. However, Clause 63 of the BNS retains the marital rape exception.
 Conclusion
The BNS bill is an attempt by the legislature to try and reform the justice system,
however, at most, it can be called as a re-arrangement of provisions of the IPC.

Practically, introducing new bills is not what is going to bring reform to the justice system
but their extensive implementation is what will make a difference.

Some scholars have contended that by changing the language of some provisions, such as,
the Sedition law, the government is trying to mislead the public into believing while the
draconian law still remains intact in the new provision.

A careful scrutiny of the proposed bill is needed!