Criminal law · BNS · BNSS · BSA

BNS, BNSS and BSA: How India's Three New Criminal Laws Differ and What Changed

On 1 July 2024 India replaced its three colonial-era criminal laws with new ones. Every police, judicial and state-service exam now asks about them. The fastest way to master the topic is to understand the division of work between the three laws first, and then learn what is genuinely new in each.

By PunjabExams Editorial Team · Updated 29 October 2026 · 6 min read · How we prepare guides

The division of work: what, how and proof

Criminal law answers three questions, and each new law answers one of them.

If you remember "Nyaya = offences, Nagarik Suraksha = procedure, Sakshya = evidence", you can answer most matching questions immediately.

Timeline

Cases registered before 1 July 2024 continue under the old laws; offences committed on or after that date are dealt with under the new laws.

Structure and section counts

The BNS has fewer sections than the IPC because related provisions were merged and some obsolete ones were dropped. The BNSS has more sections than the CrPC because it adds new procedures and timelines.

What is new in the BNS (offences)

1. New offences. Organised crime (Section 111), petty organised crime (Section 112) and terrorist act (Section 113) are now part of the general penal law. Snatching is a separate offence (Section 304). Murder by a group of five or more persons on grounds such as race, caste, community, sex or language — commonly called mob lynching — is specifically punished under Section 103(2).
2. Offences against women and children are brought together in one chapter (Chapter V). Sexual intercourse by deceitful means, including a false promise of marriage, is a separate offence (Section 69).
3. Sedition (old Section 124A) is replaced by Section 152, which punishes acts endangering the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India.
4. Community service is introduced as a form of punishment for certain petty offences.
5. Removed or changed: adultery and the remaining part of old Section 377 do not appear in the BNS, and attempt to commit suicide is not a general offence (only where it is used to compel or restrain a public servant).
6. Fines and punishments for many offences were increased.

What is new in the BNSS (procedure)

• Zero FIR and e-FIR: information about a cognizable offence can be recorded at any police station regardless of jurisdiction, and can be given electronically (Section 173).
• Preliminary enquiry: for offences punishable with three years or more but less than seven years, police may conduct a 14-day preliminary enquiry with the permission of a senior officer.
• Forensics: a forensic expert must visit the crime scene for offences punishable with seven years or more.
• Video recording of search and seizure.
• Timelines: for example, judgment within 30 days of the end of arguments (extendable to 45 days), and victims to be informed about the progress of investigation within 90 days.
• Trial in absentia of proclaimed offenders who have absconded.
• Electronic modes for summons, evidence and proceedings.
• Undertrial relief: a first-time offender who has spent one-third of the maximum sentence in detention is to be released on bond.
• Police custody: up to 15 days in total, which can be taken in parts during the first 40 or 60 days of detention, depending on the offence.

What is new in the BSA (evidence)

• Electronic records are treated as documents and can be primary evidence.
• A standard certificate format for electronic records is provided in the Schedule (corresponding to old Section 65B of the Evidence Act, now Section 63).
• The definition of evidence includes information given electronically, so witnesses and accused persons can be examined through electronic means.
• The scope of secondary evidence is widened.
• Core principles — relevance, burden of proof, confessions to police being inadmissible, dying declarations — remain.

What did not change

Many students assume everything was rewritten. In fact, most definitions and principles continue in new language: murder and culpable homicide, theft and robbery, the right of private defence, bail categories, the rules on confessions and the presumption of innocence. That is why mapping old sections to new sections is the most efficient way to revise — see our IPC to BNS mapping guide.

How exams ask about the new laws

• Matching: BNS–offences, BNSS–procedure, BSA–evidence.
• Dates: effective date (1 July 2024), presidential assent (25 December 2023).
• Counts: 358, 531 and 170 sections.
• "Which section replaced…": for example, IPC 302 → BNS 103.
• New concepts: Zero FIR, e-FIR, community service, trial in absentia, organised crime.

Practice questions

1. Q1. The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita replaced:

   • (a) Indian Penal Code
   • (b) Code of Criminal Procedure
   • (c) Indian Evidence Act
   • (d) Police Act
   Show answer

   Answer: (b) Code of Criminal Procedure — The BNSS, a procedural law, replaced the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.

2. Q2. How many sections does the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita have?

   • (a) 358
   • (b) 511
   • (c) 531
   • (d) 170
   Show answer

   Answer: (a) 358 — The BNS has 358 sections; the BNSS has 531 and the BSA 170.

3. Q3. The three new criminal laws came into force on:

   • (a) 1 January 2024
   • (b) 25 December 2023
   • (c) 1 July 2024
   • (d) 15 August 2024
   Show answer

   Answer: (c) 1 July 2024 — All three laws came into force on 1 July 2024.

4. Q4. Which of the following is introduced as a new form of punishment in the BNS?

   • (a) Transportation for life
   • (b) Community service
   • (c) Whipping
   • (d) Forfeiture of citizenship
   Show answer

   Answer: (b) Community service — Community service has been introduced for certain petty offences.

5. Q5. Under the BNSS, a forensic expert must visit the crime scene for offences punishable with:

   • (a) Any imprisonment
   • (b) Three years or more
   • (c) Seven years or more
   • (d) Death only
   Show answer

   Answer: (c) Seven years or more — Forensic investigation at the scene is mandatory for offences punishable with seven years or more.

6. Q6. Under the BSA, electronic records:

   • (a) Are not admissible
   • (b) Are admissible only with a court order
   • (c) Can be primary evidence
   • (d) Are treated only as oral evidence
   Show answer

   Answer: (c) Can be primary evidence — The BSA treats electronic records as documents that can be primary evidence.

7. Q7. Which BNS section deals with acts endangering the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India?

   • (a) Section 113
   • (b) Section 124
   • (c) Section 152
   • (d) Section 196
   Show answer

   Answer: (c) Section 152 — Section 152 replaced the old sedition provision (IPC 124A).

Frequently asked questions

Do the old IPC sections still matter?

Yes, for two reasons: cases registered before 1 July 2024 continue under the old laws, and exam questions often ask which new section replaced an old one.

Is sedition abolished?

The word "sedition" and IPC Section 124A are gone. BNS Section 152 punishes acts that endanger the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India, and its scope is debated.

Where can I read the official text?

The official texts of the BNS, BNSS and BSA are on India Code, the Government of India's repository of laws.

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