Comparative Table — IPC ↔ BNS Section Mapping

The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS) — in force from 1 July 2024 — re-enacts, restructures, and selectively reforms the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (IPC). The BNS contains 358 sections; the IPC contained 511. The substantive law has been compressed without losing material doctrine; the structural reforms consolidate the Code into 20 chapters from the IPC's 23. This article presents a chapter-wise comparative reading of the two Codes — what has changed, what has been preserved, what is new, and what is gone — with cross-references to the dedicated chapter articles in the wider IPC and BNS notes series.

Three drafting strategies dominate. First, consolidation — the BNS folds groups of related IPC sections into single sections with sub-sections. The IPC's Sections 410 to 414 on receiving stolen property become Section 317 BNS with five sub-sections; Sections 425 to 440 on mischief become Sections 324 to 328 BNS; Sections 441 to 462 on trespass become Sections 329 to 334 BNS. Second, recalibration — rupee thresholds, fines, and some imprisonment ceilings have been raised to reflect 2023 monetary value. The mischief threshold rises from fifty rupees to one lakh rupees; the public-health-offence fines rise from one thousand to five thousand rupees; the misappropriation ceiling rises from three to five years. Third, addition — wholly new offences have been created where the IPC left a gap, including mob lynching, snatching, organised crime, terrorist act, sexual intercourse by deceitful means, hit-and-run with failure to report, and community service as a sentencing option.

Chapter I to Chapter III — Preliminary, definitions, punishments

BNS Chapter I (Sections 1 to 3) corresponds to IPC Chapters I and II. Section 1 BNS preserves Sections 1 to 5 IPC on territorial application. Section 2 BNS consolidates the IPC definition sections — Sections 6 to 52 — into a single 38-clause section. Section 3 BNS contains general explanations, including the Section 34 IPC common-intention rule, now Section 3(5) BNS. The reform is structural compression rather than substantive change. The dedicated chapter on general definitions under Section 2 BNS walks through every clause of the consolidated definition section.

BNS Chapter II (Sections 4 to 13) corresponds to IPC Chapter III on punishments. The principal innovation is Section 4(f) — community service as a sentencing option — re-established in Indian criminal law for the first time. Sections 5 to 13 preserve and recalibrate the IPC sentencing framework, including solitary confinement (Section 11) and the rules for fine recovery (Section 8).

Chapter III — General exceptions, private defence, abetment

BNS Chapter III (Sections 14 to 44) corresponds to IPC Chapter IV (Sections 76 to 106). The general-exceptions framework is preserved in substance — see the dedicated chapter on general exceptions for the doctrinal exposition. The principal textual change is the use of "Court" in place of "Court of Justice" in Section 16 (formerly Section 78 IPC) and "person of unsound mind" in place of "lunatic" in Section 46 (formerly Section 108 IPC).

BNS Chapter IV (Sections 45 to 62) corresponds to IPC Chapter V on abetment, with Section 61 incorporating the conspiracy provisions formerly in Sections 120A and 120B IPC. The dedicated chapter on abetment walks through Sections 45 to 60. Section 62 covers attempt to commit offence, replacing Section 511 IPC and Section 116 IPC's residual provision.

Chapter V — Offences against women and children

BNS Chapter V (Sections 63 to 99) is a structural reorganisation that brings together — into a single chapter — offences that were scattered across the IPC. Section 63 (rape) corresponds to Section 375 IPC; Section 64 (rape punishment) corresponds to Section 376 IPC. Section 69 — covering sexual intercourse by deceitful means — is wholly new with no IPC predecessor. Sections 71 to 73 cover gang rape and aggravated rape. Sections 74 to 79 cover sexual harassment, voyeurism, and stalking. Sections 80 to 87 cover dowry death, cruelty by husband, kidnapping for marriage, and related offences. Sections 88 to 95 cover causing miscarriage and offences against children. Sections 96 to 99 cover prostitution and human trafficking.

Chapter VI — Offences affecting the human body

BNS Chapter VI (Sections 100 to 146) corresponds to the IPC's Chapter XVI Sections 299 to 377 (in part). Section 100 BNS defines culpable homicide; Section 101 BNS defines murder with the four limbs preserved from Section 300 IPC; Section 103(1) BNS punishes murder; Section 103(2) BNS — wholly new — creates the mob-lynching offence with mandatory life imprisonment as the minimum. Section 104 punishes murder by life-convict; Section 105 punishes culpable homicide not amounting to murder. Section 106(1) preserves the negligence-causing-death offence; Section 106(2) — wholly new but kept on hold — creates the hit-and-run-with-failure-to-report offence.

Sections 107 to 113 cover suicide-related offences and the new BNS innovations: Section 111 (organised crime), Section 112 (petty organised crime), and Section 113 (terrorist act). Sections 114 to 125 cover the law of hurt — re-organising IPC Sections 319 to 338 with raised thresholds and the new fifteen-day-incapacitation limb. Sections 126 to 134 cover wrongful restraint, criminal force, and assault. Sections 137 to 146 cover kidnapping, abduction, slavery, and forced labour.

Section 377 IPC — what is gone

The BNS does not re-enact Section 377 IPC. The deletion follows the constitutional reading-down of Section 377 by the Supreme Court in Navtej Singh Johar v. Union of India (2018), which decriminalised consensual same-sex relations between adults. The doctrinal consequence is significant: non-consensual sodomy on an adult male or transgender person now travels under Section 117 BNS for grievous hurt read with cognate provisions, since the BNS rape provision (Section 63) covers rape of a woman only. The doctrinal gap is examined in the chapter on unnatural offences post-Navtej Singh Johar.

Chapter VII to Chapter X — State, defence, elections, coin

BNS Chapter VII (Sections 147 to 158) corresponds to IPC Chapter VI on offences against the State. Section 147 (waging war against the Government) preserves Section 121 IPC. Section 152 BNS — replacing the colonial Section 124A IPC sedition offence — narrows the actus reus to endangering sovereignty, unity, and integrity with explicit textual carve-outs for permissible criticism. The textual reform is a direct legislative response to the doctrinal accumulations around the colonial Section 124A.

BNS Chapter VIII (Sections 159 to 168) corresponds to IPC Chapter VII on offences relating to the Army, Navy, and Air Force. BNS Chapter IX (Sections 169 to 177) covers election offences. BNS Chapter X (Sections 178 to 188) covers offences relating to coin and government stamps — re-organising IPC Sections 230 to 263A and adding the Reserve Bank Act, 1934, currency-counterfeiting cognate offences within the same chapter.

Chapter XI to Chapter XIV — Tranquillity, public servants, contempt, public justice

BNS Chapter XI (Sections 189 to 197) corresponds to IPC Chapter VIII on public tranquillity. Section 189(1) preserves the unlawful-assembly threshold of five-or-more from Section 141 IPC. Section 191(2) preserves the common-object liability rule from Section 149 IPC. The dedicated chapter on common intention versus common object walks through Section 3(5) and Section 191(2) BNS together.

BNS Chapter XII (Sections 198 to 205) covers offences by or relating to public servants. BNS Chapter XIII (Sections 206 to 226) covers contempts of lawful authority. BNS Chapter XIV (Sections 227 to 269) covers false evidence and offences against public justice, re-enacting IPC Sections 191 to 229 with sentencing recalibrated upward in some sub-sections.

Chapter XV to Chapter XVI — Public health, religion

BNS Chapter XV (Sections 270 to 297) covers offences affecting public health, safety, convenience, decency, and morals. Sections 274 to 278 within this chapter cover adulteration of food and drugs; Section 279 covers fouling water of a public spring or reservoir. The principal recalibration is the increase in fines from one thousand to five thousand rupees and the doubled imprisonment ceiling for drug adulteration under Section 276 BNS.

BNS Chapter XVI (Sections 298 to 302) covers offences relating to religion. The four-section structure preserves the substance of IPC Sections 295 to 298, including the offence of injuring or defiling a place of worship and the offence of uttering words with deliberate intent to wound religious feelings.

Chapter XVII — Offences against property

BNS Chapter XVII (Sections 303 to 334) is the most extensively reorganised property chapter. Section 303 covers theft (Section 378 IPC); Section 304 BNS — wholly new — covers snatching; Section 305 covers theft in a dwelling-house. Sections 306 and 307 cover specialised theft variants; Section 308 covers extortion (consolidating IPC Sections 383 to 389 into seven sub-sections). Sections 309 to 313 cover robbery and dacoity; Sections 314 to 316 cover criminal misappropriation and breach of trust; Section 317 covers receiving stolen property (consolidating IPC Sections 410 to 414 with cheating added as a new source-offence). Sections 318 and 319 cover cheating; Sections 320 to 323 cover fraudulent deeds and dispositions; Sections 324 to 328 cover mischief; Sections 329 to 334 cover criminal trespass and house-breaking.

Chapter XVIII — Documents and property marks

BNS Chapter XVIII (Sections 335 to 350) covers forgery and property marks. The principal reforms are the addition of identity-document forgery to Section 337 (Aadhaar, voter-ID), the new sub-sections on counterfeit-seal possession and use under Section 341, and the express extension of the forgery offences to electronic records.

Chapter XIX to Chapter XX — Marriage, defamation, intimidation

BNS Chapter XIX covers offences relating to marriage and to women. The BNS does not re-enact IPC Section 497 (adultery) — the offence was struck down in Joseph Shine v. Union of India (2018) and is not revived. Section 82 BNS covers bigamy; Section 84 BNS covers enticing a married woman.

BNS Section 356 covers defamation, folding IPC Sections 499 to 502 into four sub-sections with the addition of community service as a sentencing alternative under Section 356(2). BNS Sections 351 to 357 cover criminal intimidation, insult, and annoyance, with Section 351 expressly covering intimidation by electronic means.

What is wholly new in the BNS

1. Community service as a sentence (Section 4(f) BNS) — re-established as a Code-level sentencing option for offences punishable up to three months.
2. Mob lynching (Section 103(2) BNS) — group murder on identity grounds with mandatory life imprisonment as the minimum.
3. Organised crime (Section 111 BNS) — continuing unlawful activity by a syndicate.
4. Petty organised crime (Section 112 BNS) — group-level offences below the organised-crime threshold.
5. Terrorist act (Section 113 BNS) — first comprehensive Code-level definition with concurrent UAPA jurisdiction.
6. Snatching (Section 304 BNS) — the speed-and-surprise offence between theft and robbery.
7. Sexual intercourse by deceitful means (Section 69 BNS) — false-promise-of-marriage and similar deception offences.
8. Hit-and-run with failure to report (Section 106(2) BNS) — currently on hold pending consultation.
9. Section 152 BNS — replacing colonial sedition with a narrower sovereignty-and-integrity offence.
10. Section 324(3) BNS — mischief to government or local-authority property as a stand-alone aggravation.
11. Section 337 BNS additions — identity-document forgery within the higher punishment band.
12. Section 341(3) and (4) BNS — possession and use of counterfeit seals as stand-alone offences.

What is gone from the BNS

1. Section 124A IPC (sedition) — repealed; replaced by the narrower Section 152 BNS.
2. Section 377 IPC (unnatural offences) — not re-enacted following Navtej Singh Johar (2018).
3. Section 497 IPC (adultery) — not re-enacted following Joseph Shine (2018).
4. Section 309 IPC (attempt to suicide) — substantially constrained, in line with the Mental Healthcare Act, 2017, presumption of severe stress.
5. The IPC's 50-rupee mischief threshold — replaced by 20,000-rupee and 1-lakh-rupee bands.
6. The IPC's gender-specific words in several sections — replaced by gender-neutral formulations in Sections 137, 139, 143, and 144 BNS.

The BNSS and BSA — companion reforms

The BNS does not stand alone. It came into force on 1 July 2024 alongside two companion statutes: the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS), replacing the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973; and the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 (BSA), replacing the Indian Evidence Act, 1872. The three together constitute the most comprehensive overhaul of Indian criminal law since the original codification. The BNSS introduces electronic FIR registration, time-bound investigation, mandatory videography of search and seizure, and victim-impact provisions. The BSA introduces electronic-evidence rules, the abolition of certain colonial categories, and an expanded definition of documentary evidence.

The substantive law (BNS) and the procedural framework (BNSS and BSA) are designed to interlock. Section 71 BNS on multiple offences in the same transaction operates with BNSS Section 270 on procedure for compound offences; Section 4(f) BNS community service operates with BNSS Section 23 Explanation on community-service supervision; Section 113 BNS terrorist act operates with concurrent UAPA jurisdiction. Future jurisprudence will work through the interlock case by case.

Sentencing recalibration — a numerical summary

A summary of the BNS sentencing changes: ceilings have been raised in roughly 35 sections (notably hurt, theft repeat-offender, extortion, cheating, criminal trespass, mischief, drug adulteration, false property marks); minimums have been added in roughly 8 sections (notably misappropriation under Section 314, fraudulent deeds under Section 320, dacoity-with-murder under Section 310(3)); fines have been raised across the property and public-health chapters from one thousand to five thousand rupees; community service has been added as an alternative in roughly 6 sections including defamation, criminal intimidation, and the basic offences in mischief and trespass. The recalibration reflects 2023 monetary value and contemporary policy concerns; the underlying ingredient-structure of most offences is unchanged.

How to use this comparative reading for exam preparation

Three preparation strategies are useful. First, anchor every IPC section in the corresponding BNS section using the official BNS-IPC correspondence table; the table is authoritative and supersedes any conflicting mapping in pre-BNS textbooks. Second, learn the wholly-new BNS provisions as stand-alone topics — they are likely high-yield in coming examinations because of their novelty. Third, learn the deleted-IPC provisions (Sections 124A, 377, 497) and the doctrinal consequences of their absence; examiners frequently test these on the boundary line between criminal liability and the residual cognate offences.

Pillar references and continuing reading

For a deep dive into how each substantive doctrine has been recalibrated, the reader is referred to the chapter-by-chapter articles in the IPC and BNS notes series. The landmark cases chapter works through the leading decisions of the Supreme Court that continue to shape doctrine under the BNS, including Bachan Singh on the rarest-of-rare doctrine, Joseph Shine on adultery, Navtej Singh Johar on Section 377, and Vishaka on workplace sexual harassment.

Doctrinal continuity — what the BNS preserves

For all the structural reform, doctrinal continuity is the dominant theme. The four-fold test of murder from Section 300 IPC, articulated by Vivian Bose J in Virsa Singh v. State of Punjab (1958), is preserved in Section 101 BNS. The five-element analysis of robbery in Joseph Mingel Koli v. State of Maharashtra (1973) under Section 390 IPC carries forward to Section 309 BNS. The Khosla rule on what makes a document false from A.K. Khosla v. T.S. Venkatesan (1994) governs Section 335 BNS as it did Section 464 IPC. The five exceptions to murder under Section 300 IPC carry forward as the five exceptions to Section 101 BNS, including grave-and-sudden-provocation as articulated in K.M. Nanavati v. State of Maharashtra (1962). The case-law accumulated under the IPC continues to operate under the BNS, with doctrines re-stated in BNS section numbers but ingredient-structure unchanged.

The transition framework — Section 6 of the General Clauses Act

The BNS came into force on 1 July 2024. Offences committed before that date continue to be tried under the IPC by virtue of Section 6 of the General Clauses Act, 1897, which preserves prior rights, liabilities, penalties, and proceedings on repeal. The BNSS Section 531 expressly preserves continuing investigations, inquiries, and trials under the CrPC. The doctrinal upshot is that in 2026 — and for several years to come — courts will simultaneously apply the IPC for pre-1-July-2024 incidents and the BNS for post-1-July-2024 incidents. Trial-court judges and counsel will need to track both Codes in active practice.

The constitutional dimension — Articles 14, 20, and 21

The BNS reform exercise was conducted within the constitutional constraints of Articles 14, 20, and 21. Article 14 forbids arbitrary or unreasonable classification; the BNS was scrutinised on this front for its retention of capital punishment in several offences and for the constitutional acceptability of the new mob-lynching offence's vicarious capital exposure. Article 20(1) prohibits ex post facto criminal liability and ex post facto enhancement of punishment; the BNS provisions accordingly apply prospectively to offences committed after 1 July 2024. Article 21's right to life supplied the constitutional anchor for several BNS innovations including the codification of community service and the explicit textual protection for permissible criticism within Section 152. The constitutional reading-down jurisprudence developed under the IPC — particularly under Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India (1978) for procedural due process and under the post-2013 line on Article 21 — continues to operate under the BNS as the interpretive backstop. Future constitutional challenges to BNS provisions will be tested against the same standards of reasonableness, proportionality, and procedural fairness that shaped IPC jurisprudence over the seventy-five years since the Constitution came into force.

MCQ angle — what state-judiciary papers test

Examiners frequently test the comparative reading in three formats. First, the direct correspondence question — "Section 304 BNS corresponds to which IPC section?" The candidate must remember that snatching is wholly new and has no IPC predecessor. Second, the substantive-change question — "What has the BNS changed in the law of mischief?" The candidate must remember the rupee-threshold recalibration and the new Section 324(3) sub-section. Third, the deleted-section question — "Where in the BNS is the punishment for adultery?" The candidate must remember that Section 497 IPC was struck down in Joseph Shine and is not re-enacted. Cross-doctrinal questions about the BNS-BNSS-BSA triple statute, particularly on the procedural consequences of the BNS substantive innovations, also feature regularly in state-judiciary papers from 2025 onwards, with examiners drawing on the official correspondence tables for both the substantive and procedural Codes.

Frequently asked questions

How many sections does the BNS have compared to the IPC?

The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, contains 358 sections in 20 chapters. The Indian Penal Code, 1860, contained 511 sections in 23 chapters. The compression is achieved by three drafting strategies: consolidation (folding groups of related IPC sections into single BNS sections with sub-sections); recalibration (updating rupee thresholds and some imprisonment ceilings to reflect 2023 monetary value); and addition (creating wholly new offences for fact-patterns the IPC did not cover). The compression has not lost material doctrine; the substantive ingredient-structure of most offences is preserved.

What are the wholly new offences in the BNS that have no IPC predecessor?

The principal wholly new offences are: community service as a sentence under Section 4(f); mob lynching under Section 103(2); organised crime under Section 111; petty organised crime under Section 112; terrorist act under Section 113; snatching under Section 304; sexual intercourse by deceitful means under Section 69; hit-and-run with failure to report under Section 106(2) (currently on hold); Section 152 replacing colonial sedition; Section 324(3) for mischief to government property; Section 337's identity-document additions; and Section 341(3)-(4) on counterfeit-seal possession and use. Each is examined in a dedicated chapter of the IPC and BNS notes series.

Which IPC sections has the BNS dropped entirely?

The principal deletions are: Section 124A IPC (sedition) — repealed; replaced by the narrower Section 152 BNS on endangering sovereignty, unity, and integrity. Section 377 IPC (unnatural offences) — not re-enacted following Navtej Singh Johar v. Union of India (2018), creating a doctrinal gap for non-consensual sodomy on adult males and transgender persons. Section 497 IPC (adultery) — not re-enacted following Joseph Shine v. Union of India (2018). Section 309 IPC (attempt to suicide) — substantially constrained, in line with the Mental Healthcare Act, 2017, presumption of severe stress. The 50-rupee mischief threshold of the IPC is replaced by 20,000-rupee and 1-lakh-rupee bands.

Does the BNS-IPC correspondence table override pre-BNS textbook mappings?

Yes. The official BNS-IPC correspondence table is authoritative and supersedes any conflicting mapping in pre-BNS textbooks — most legal textbooks were written for the IPC and have not been comprehensively updated. For exam preparation, candidates should use the correspondence table as the primary reference and treat textbook section numbers with caution where they conflict with the table. The doctrinal exposition in the textbooks remains valuable for understanding the substantive ingredients; the section-number mapping must be cross-checked against the official correspondence table.

What companion reforms accompany the BNS?

The BNS came into force on 1 July 2024 alongside two companion statutes: the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS), replacing the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973; and the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 (BSA), replacing the Indian Evidence Act, 1872. The three statutes together constitute the most comprehensive overhaul of Indian criminal law since 1860. The BNSS introduces electronic FIR registration, time-bound investigation, mandatory videography of search and seizure, and victim-impact provisions. The BSA introduces electronic-evidence rules and an expanded definition of documentary evidence. The substantive and procedural reforms are designed to interlock; future jurisprudence will work through the interlock case by case.