Comparative Table — CrPC ↔ BNSS Section Mapping

The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS), notified on 1 July 2024, replaced the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (CrPC). Of the 484 sections of the CrPC, all have been carried forward, redrafted or absorbed into 531 sections of the BNSS, with several wholly new provisions added. For the judiciary aspirant and the trial-court reader, the central question is not whether the BNSS departs from the CrPC — it does, in places significantly — but where exactly the departures lie. This chapter sets out the answer in compact, exam-ready form: a chapter-by-chapter mapping of the two Codes, with substantive changes flagged at each row.

The mapping is read in three columns: BNSS section number and heading, the corresponding CrPC section number, and a one-line summary of what changed. A blank in the CrPC column indicates a wholly new BNSS provision with no predecessor. The phrase “no change” in the summary indicates that the language is substantially identical, allowing for the universal substitution of “Sanhita” for “Code” and “Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita” for “Indian Penal Code”. Changes to the punishment menu, the introduction of audio-video procedures, the abolition of the Metropolitan Magistrate and the third-class Magistrate, and the elevation of forensic-investigation and trial-in-absentia provisions are the categories where the table earns its keep.

Methodology and how to read the table

Three drafting choices in the BNSS produce most of the renumbering noise that confuses first-time readers. First, the abolition of the Metropolitan Magistrate, the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate and the Assistant Sessions Judge has cascaded through dozens of sections; references to those offices have been excluded throughout. Second, the third-class Magistrate is gone, and the sentencing tier in Section 23 BNSS (previously Section 29 CrPC) is restructured accordingly. Third, audio-video electronic means have been added across the investigation, search, evidence-recording and judgment-delivery provisions, producing minor but uniform additions to many sections.

Beyond these three structural changes, the BNSS contains five wholly new substantive innovations that do not appear in the CrPC at all: Zero FIR and e-FIR registration under Section 173 BNSS, audio-video recording of search and seizure under Section 105 BNSS, attachment and forfeiture of proceeds of crime under Section 107 BNSS, trial in absentia of proclaimed offenders under Section 356 BNSS, and forensic visit in 7-plus-year offences under Section 176(3) BNSS. Each of these has its own dedicated chapter in the CrPC and BNSS notes series and the table below cross-references them.

Part I — Preliminary, Definitions and Court Constitution (BNSS Sections 1 to 30)

The opening chapters of the BNSS reorganise definitions and classes of criminal courts. The principal change is the addition of new defined terms (audio-video electronic means, bail, bail bond, bond, electronic communication) and the abolition of the Metropolitan Magistrate.

BNSS	Subject	CrPC	What changed
1	Short title, extent and commencement	1	Renamed; commencement provisions revised.
2	Definitions	2	New terms added: audio-video electronic means, bail, bail bond, bond, electronic communication.
6 to 15	Classes of Criminal Courts and Magistrates	6 to 21	Metropolitan Magistrate, Chief Metropolitan Magistrate and Assistant Sessions Judge abolished. Police officers of SP rank may be appointed Special Executive Magistrates.
20	Directorate of Prosecution	25A	District Directorate of Prosecution introduced. Sub-sections (8) to (11) newly added.
23	Sentences which Magistrates may pass	29	Fines revised upward (10,000 to 50,000 / 5,000 to 10,000). Community service introduced as a sentencing option in the Explanation.
25	Sentence in cases of conviction of several offences at one trial	31	Maximum aggregate raised from fourteen to twenty years.

The aspirant should note in particular that the abolition of the Metropolitan Magistrate ripples through the rest of the Code. Wherever the CrPC said “Magistrate or Metropolitan Magistrate”, the BNSS now says simply “Magistrate”. The change is purely structural and does not alter the substantive jurisdiction; the Magistrate of First Class in a metropolitan city now performs the functions previously distributed between the two posts.

Part II — Police Powers, Arrest and Processes (BNSS Sections 31 to 90)

The arrest and process chapters carry forward the CrPC scheme with significant additions on bail-on-arrest and on arrest of women. The forty-one-A line on notice of appearance, introduced into the CrPC by the 2008 Amendment, survives.

BNSS	Subject	CrPC	What changed
35	When police may arrest without warrant	41	The framework of Arnesh Kumar v. State of Bihar (2014) 8 SCC 273 codified; arrest in offences punishable up to three years requires recorded reasons and prior approval of the DSP.
43	How arrest is made	46	Sub-section on use of handcuffs added; specific permissions for handcuffing in serious-offence cases.
48	Person arrested to be informed of grounds of arrest	50	No change in substance; aligned with Article 22(1) of the Constitution.
59	Arrested person to be released on bail in bailable offence	62	Procedural language modernised.
61 to 65	Summons	62 to 68	Service through audio-video electronic means recognised.
72 to 81	Warrants of arrest	70 to 81	Carried forward with drafting improvements.
84	Proclamation for person absconding	82	The IPC sections in sub-section (4) replaced with corresponding BNS sections; the trigger expanded to offences punishable for ten years or more.
86	Identification and attachment of property of proclaimed person	—	Newly added. Empowers identification and attachment of foreign property of proclaimed person.

Part III — Search, Seizure, Reciprocal Arrangements and Public Order (BNSS Sections 91 to 145)

This block contains some of the most consequential additions in the new Code — the audio-video recording of search and seizure under Section 105 BNSS, the new domestic forfeiture power under Section 107 BNSS, and the carry-over of the international architecture into Sections 111 to 124 BNSS.

BNSS	Subject	CrPC	What changed
96 to 104	Search-warrants and seizure	91 to 100	Substantive carry-over with drafting changes.
105	Recording of search and seizure through audio-video electronic means	—	Newly added. Mobile-phone videography mandatory.
107	Attachment, forfeiture or restoration of property	—	Newly added. Domestic forfeiture of proceeds of crime; replaces the international-only restriction of the predecessor Chapter VII-A.
111 to 124	Reciprocal arrangements with foreign countries	105A to 105L	Substantive carry-over with one update: the Companies Act 1956 reference in Section 120(4) replaced by the Companies Act 2013.
126 to 143	Security for keeping the peace; Public Order	106 to 124	Carry-over with minor drafting amendments. The maintenance-of-public-order regime is preserved with the substitution of BNS section references.

Part IV — Maintenance, FIR and Police Investigation (BNSS Sections 144 to 193)

Section 144 BNSS now houses the maintenance-of-wife-children-parents provision (previously Section 125 CrPC). Section 173 BNSS introduces Zero FIR and e-FIR registration as a statutory entitlement. Section 176(3) BNSS introduces the mandatory forensic visit in 7-plus-year offences.

BNSS	Subject	CrPC	What changed
144	Order for maintenance of wives, children and parents	125	Substantive carry-over; the section number changes materially from CrPC 125 to BNSS 144.
173	Information in cognizable cases	154	Zero FIR and e-FIR codified; territorial-jurisdiction objection no longer ground for refusal.
176	Procedure for investigation	157	Audio-video electronic means added in clause (b) of sub-section (1). Sub-section (2) requires fortnightly forwarding of the daily diary report. Sub-section (3) newly added — mandatory forensic-expert visit in offences of seven years or more.
180	Examination of witnesses by police	161	Recording through audio-video electronic means recognised.
193	Report of police officer on completion of investigation	173	Time-limit for completion in 7-plus-year offences emphasised; supplementary report regime clarified.
196	Inquiry by Magistrate into cause of death	176	Metropolitan Magistrate excluded; Judicial Magistrate now performs the function across all areas.

Part V — Initiation, Charge and Trial Procedures (BNSS Sections 210 to 300)

The trial-procedure block carries forward the four trial frameworks — sessions, warrant, summons and summary — with timeline reforms. Plea bargaining (Chapter XXIA CrPC, now Chapter XXIII BNSS) is significantly tightened to reward first-time offenders.

BNSS	Subject	CrPC	What changed
210 to 222	Conditions requisite for initiation of proceedings	190 to 199	Carry-over with drafting amendments.
234 to 247	The charge	211 to 224	Carry-over with drafting amendments.
248 to 260	Trial before a Court of Session	225 to 237	Carry-over with timeline tightening for delivery of judgment.
261 to 273	Trial of warrant cases by Magistrates	238 to 250	Carry-over with audio-video accommodation.
274 to 282	Trial of summons cases by Magistrates	251 to 259	Substantive carry-over.
283 to 288	Summary trials	260 to 265	Threshold for summary trial expanded; offences punishable up to three years now eligible.
289 to 300	Plea bargaining	265A to 265L	Plea-bargaining incentives strengthened; community service is a permissible disposition under Section 290 BNSS.

Part VI — Evidence, Inquiries, Judgment, Death-Sentence Confirmation, Appeals (BNSS Sections 301 to 423)

The block on evidence and judgment incorporates the new trial-in-absentia mechanism and tightens timelines for delivery of judgment.

BNSS	Subject	CrPC	What changed
308 to 318	Evidence in inquiries and trials	272 to 283	Audio-video means accommodated for recording and re-recording of evidence.
355	Inquiries and trial in the absence of accused (consent)	317	“Pleader” replaced with “advocate”; explanation that personal attendance includes audio-video attendance.
356	Inquiry, trial or judgment in absentia of proclaimed offender	—	Newly added. Trial in absentia after ninety-day wait from proclamation.
391 to 405	The judgment	353 to 365	Timeline for delivery of judgment specified; carry-over otherwise.
407 to 411	Submission of death sentences for confirmation	366 to 371	Carry-over.
413 to 435	Appeals	372 to 394	Carry-over with drafting amendments.
438 to 446	Reference and Revision	395 to 405	Substantive carry-over.

Part VII — Bail, Disposal of Property, Limitation, Miscellaneous (BNSS Sections 478 to 531)

The closing block contains the bail provisions, disposal-of-property regime, limitation rules and the inherent powers of the High Court.

BNSS	Subject	CrPC	What changed
478 to 496	Provisions as to bail and bonds	436 to 450	First-time-offender bail concession added.
497 to 503	Disposal of property	451 to 459	Substantive carry-over.
504 to 511	Irregular proceedings	460 to 466	Carry-over.
513 to 519	Limitation for taking cognizance	467 to 473	Substantive carry-over.
528	Inherent powers of High Court	482	No change in substance; one of the most quoted renumberings of the BNSS.
529 to 531	Miscellaneous	483 to 484	Repeals and savings restated.

The five wholly new BNSS provisions

For revision purposes, five BNSS sections have no CrPC predecessor at all. They are the headline innovations and are likely to be the most-tested portion of the BNSS for the next several mains cycles. Each is treated in its own dedicated chapter in the subject hub for the new procedural Code, and the entries below should be read together with those chapters for substantive treatment. The reform is significant enough that for the next several mains cycles, examiners will expect candidates to identify each new section by number, locate it in the broader scheme of the BNSS, and connect it to the older CrPC architecture it replaces or complements. The candidate who treats this chapter as a static lookup table will lose the synthesis marks; the candidate who reads it alongside the substantive chapters will hold the integrated picture.

BNSS	Subject	Why it matters
105	Audio-video recording of search and seizure	Mobile-phone videograph of every search and seizure operation; failure undermines evidentiary value of the seizure list.
107	Attachment and forfeiture of proceeds of crime	Domestic forfeiture power that does not require a contracting-State link; closes the gap left by the Supreme Court's reading in State of M.P. v. Balram Mihani (2010) 2 SCC 602.
173	FIR with Zero FIR and e-FIR codification	Territorial-jurisdiction objection no longer a ground for refusing registration; e-FIR for specified offences.
176(3)	Forensic visit in 7-plus-year offences	Forensic team must visit crime scene; videography of the collection is mandatory.
356	Trial in absentia of proclaimed offender	Trial proceeds without the absconder after ninety days from proclamation; counsel appointed at State expense.

The substantively changed sections

A second category of provisions has the same broad subject matter as the CrPC predecessor but contains substantive amendments. The aspirant who memorises only the renumbering will lose marks on these; the test is what changed, not where the section now sits.

1. Section 23 BNSS — sentencing power of Magistrates. Fines revised upward; community service introduced.
2. Section 25 BNSS — consecutive sentencing aggregate. Maximum aggregate raised from fourteen to twenty years.
3. Section 35 BNSS — arrest without warrant. Arnesh Kumar framework codified.
4. Section 84 BNSS — proclamation. IPC references replaced with BNS; trigger expanded to ten-year offences. The proclamation is now the gateway to the in-absentia trial regime described in the chapter on trial in absentia of proclaimed offenders.
5. Section 173 BNSS — FIR. Zero FIR and e-FIR codified; the chapter on FIR and Zero FIR walks through the change.
6. Section 176 BNSS — investigation procedure. Forensic visit and audio-video means added. The reform is treated in detail in the chapter on forensic investigation in serious offences.
7. Sections 283 to 288 BNSS — summary trial. Threshold expanded to offences punishable up to three years.
8. Section 290 BNSS — plea-bargaining disposition. Community service is now a permissible disposition under the plea-bargaining chapter.
9. Section 355 BNSS — absence of accused with consent. Audio-video attendance recognised.
10. Section 478 BNSS — first-time offender bail. Bail concession for first-time offenders codified, treated in the chapter on bail and bonds.
11. Section 105 BNSS — audio-video search. Mobile-phone videograph mandatory; covered in the chapter on audio-video recording of search and seizure.
12. Section 107 BNSS — domestic forfeiture. Treated in the chapter on attachment and forfeiture of proceeds of crime.

Procedural traps and exam-angle distinctions

Three traps recur in objective papers and the candidate should commit them to memory.

1. Section 482 CrPC → Section 528 BNSS. The most quoted renumbering. The inherent power of the High Court does not change in substance, but the section number changes by 46. Examiners delight in framing the question with a single number.
2. Section 125 CrPC → Section 144 BNSS. Maintenance of wife, children and parents has moved into a chapter that previously housed the maintenance-of-public-order provisions. The number is materially different from the predecessor and from the renumbered public-order provisions.
3. Five new sections, three innovations. The aspirant must distinguish renumbering from innovation. Sections 105, 107, 173 (in part), 176(3) and 356 are the wholly new contributions of the BNSS. Everything else is renumbering with or without substantive change.

The reader who has worked through the full set of CrPC and BNSS chapter notes — from the foundational introduction-and-scheme chapter to the BNSS-innovations chapters at the end — will find this comparative table the natural revision document. Used together with the chapter on inherent powers under Section 528 BNSS, the table is the high-yield closer for state-judiciary mains preparation, All India Bar examinations and the BNSS-specific portions of the annual question banks.

How the BNSS preserves jurisprudence under the CrPC

One question that recurs in study groups is the fate of decades of CrPC case-law under the BNSS. The answer is reassuring for the trial-court reader. Where the BNSS preserves the substance of the CrPC provision — which is the case for the great majority of the 484 sections of the older Code — the older Supreme Court and High Court decisions remain good law. The doctrine continues; only the section number changes. The case-law on Section 482 CrPC (now Section 528 BNSS), on Section 125 CrPC (now Section 144 BNSS), on Section 313 CrPC (now Section 351 BNSS), on Section 161 CrPC (now Section 180 BNSS) and on Section 173 CrPC (now Section 193 BNSS) is therefore not displaced.

Where the BNSS substantively changes the provision — the upward revision of fines under Section 23, the introduction of community service, the codification of Zero FIR under Section 173, the forensic mandate of Section 176(3), the trial-in-absentia regime of Section 356, the domestic-forfeiture power of Section 107 — the older case-law continues to be useful for the doctrinal reasoning but the operative section number, the trigger condition and the procedural form must be re-checked. A judgment of the Supreme Court that interprets Section 154 CrPC narrowly on territorial-jurisdiction objection, for instance, is no longer the operative authority because the BNSS has removed the objection by statute.

Tips for revision and the BNSS-versus-CrPC examiner

State-judiciary mains examiners and All India Bar examiners are testing two skills with the BNSS. First, can the candidate locate a provision in the new Code without reaching for the old one? Second, does the candidate know what changed? The first is a numbering test; the second is a substance test. Both must be prepared in parallel.

• Build a reciprocal flashcard. Every CrPC section the candidate has memorised should be paired with its BNSS counterpart on a flashcard. Confusingly, some BNSS section numbers reuse CrPC numbers for different subjects: Section 144 BNSS is maintenance (CrPC Section 125), but Section 144 CrPC was prevention of public nuisance (now Section 163 BNSS). The reciprocal flashcard catches this.
• List the new sections. Five new sections, ten substantive amendments. The candidate who can list these from memory has covered most of the BNSS-specific question bank.
• Read the actual section. A summary table is no substitute for the bare BNSS text. Read the actual text of Sections 105, 107, 173, 176, 290, 355, 356 and 528 BNSS at least once before the examination.
• Trace one full case-flow. Take a hypothetical 7-plus-year offence and walk it from FIR (Section 173 BNSS) through investigation (Section 176 BNSS, with forensic visit), through search and seizure (Section 105 BNSS), through proclamation if absconding (Sections 84 to 86 BNSS), through forfeiture (Section 107 BNSS), through trial (Sections 248 to 260 BNSS), to judgment and appeal. Doing this once produces durable BNSS literacy.
• Cross-check with the BNS and BSA. The BNSS often references BNS sections; the candidate should hold all three Codes — BNS, BNSS, BSA — together for serious mains preparation.

Used in this disciplined way, the comparative mapping in this chapter does its job: it shifts the candidate from a CrPC-trained reader to a BNSS-fluent practitioner. The transition is real, the renumbering is dense, but the underlying procedural architecture is recognisable. The BNSS is, in the end, an evolution of the CrPC rather than a revolution against it.

Frequently asked questions

Which CrPC sections have no BNSS counterpart?

A handful of CrPC provisions have been excluded in the BNSS. The most consequential exclusions arise from the abolition of the Metropolitan Magistrate, the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate and the Assistant Sessions Judge — the CrPC sub-sections that defined or empowered these officers (parts of Sections 8, 9, 11, 12, 14, 17, 22, 29, 113, 196, 214, 320, 321, 415, 422 and 436 CrPC) are excluded or rewritten. Some definitional sub-sections (CrPC 2(f), 2(k), 2(q), 2(t)) are excluded as superfluous. The substantive trial architecture is otherwise preserved.

Is Section 482 CrPC the same as Section 528 BNSS?

Yes, in substance. The inherent power of the High Court to make any order necessary to prevent abuse of process or to secure the ends of justice is preserved without textual change; only the section number has shifted. The shift is by forty-six numbers, from 482 to 528. The renumbering is a frequent subject of objective questions because candidates who relied on the older case-law without verifying the new number are caught out.

How many wholly new sections does the BNSS contain?

The five headline new sections are 105 (audio-video recording of search and seizure), 107 (attachment, forfeiture or restoration of property), 173 (Zero FIR and e-FIR codification — the section also corresponds to Section 154 CrPC), 176(3) (mandatory forensic visit in 7-plus-year offences) and 356 (trial in absentia of proclaimed offender). A handful of smaller new provisions are scattered through the Code (Section 86 on identification of foreign property of proclaimed person, Section 20 on the District Directorate of Prosecution, sub-sections of Section 8 on the Court of Session) but the five listed above are the substantive innovations.

Has the maintenance-of-wife-children-parents provision moved sections?

Yes. The provision was Section 125 CrPC; it is now Section 144 BNSS. The substance of the provision is preserved — the Magistrate's power to award maintenance to a destitute wife, child or parent — but the section number has changed materially. The aspirant must take care because Section 144 CrPC was a different provision (orders for prevention of public nuisance), now relocated to Section 163 BNSS. The two distinct uses of the number 144 across the two Codes are a frequent source of confusion.

Has the threshold for summary trial changed under the BNSS?

Yes. Under Section 260 CrPC the threshold for summary trial was offences punishable with imprisonment up to two years. Under Section 283 BNSS, the threshold has been raised to offences punishable with imprisonment up to three years. The change increases the volume of cases that can be disposed by summary procedure and should reduce trial-court pendency in petty-offence categories.

Are old Supreme Court judgments under the CrPC still good law under the BNSS?

Yes, with one caveat. Where the BNSS preserves the substance of the CrPC provision (which is the case for the great majority), the judgment continues to be good law and the doctrinal reasoning is restated in BNSS section terms. Where the BNSS substantively changes the provision (Section 23 fines, Section 25 aggregate, Section 173 Zero FIR, Section 176(3) forensic mandate, Section 356 trial in absentia), the older judgments are subject to revision. The chapter on each substantive change identifies the specific judgments that need to be re-read in the new statutory context.