The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita is India’s general criminal code and it replaced the Indian Penal Code of 1860 with effect from 1 July 2024. It is shorter than the IPC, with 358 sections against 511, because a number of colonial era offences were dropped and related provisions were merged. Any offence committed before 1 July 2024 is still tried under the IPC, so both codes will run in parallel in the courts for years.
Section numbers changed almost everywhere, which is the first thing an ordinary person notices. Murder moved from Section 302 to Section 103, culpable homicide not amounting to murder to Section 105, cheating to Section 318, criminal breach of trust to Section 316, and rape to Section 64. Defamation is now Section 356.
The substantive changes matter more. Sedition under the old Section 124A is gone, replaced by Section 152, which targets acts endangering the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India. Organised crime and terrorism, previously handled only by special statutes, now appear in the general code as Sections 111 and 113. Section 69 creates a new offence covering sexual intercourse obtained through a false promise of marriage or employment. Mob lynching on grounds such as race, caste or religion becomes a distinct offence. Section 106 raises punishment for causing death by rash driving, and its second sub section on fleeing the scene has still not been brought into force after protests by transport workers. Community service arrives as a formal punishment for minor offences.