Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023: Analysing The Proposed Replacement To The Indian Penal Code, 1860

Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas Update

The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Bill, 2023 was introduced in the Lok Sabha on August 11, 2023 with the aim to repeal and replace the existing Indian Penal Code, 1860 along with two other bills intended to replace the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 and the Indian Evidence Act, 1872.

This note summarises the most notable changes to the IPC which have been proposed in the Bill.

Summarily, the most significant changes sought to be introduced by virtue of the Bill include the consolidation of certain provisions of the IPC to make it more concise (356 sections as compared to 511 sections in the IPC); and introducing certain new offences such as hate speech and terrorism while re-characterising sedition as acts endangering the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India.

Key Takeaway in relation to Economic Offences

While existing offences pertaining to economic crimes are not significantly changed by virtue of the Bill, the term ‘economic offences’ has been introduced for the first time as part of the offence of organised crime to include criminal breach of trust, forgery, counterfeiting of currency and valuable securities, financial scams, running Ponzi schemes, mass-marketing fraud or multilevel marketing schemes with a view to defraud the people at large for obtaining the monetary benefits or large scale organised betting in any form, offences of money laundering and hawala transactions.

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