Section 120 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023
Section 120 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023 addresses the offence of voluntarily causing hurt or grievous hurt to extort a confession or compel the restoration of property. This provision is analogous to Sections 330 and 331 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), 1860
๐ Text of Section 120 โ Voluntarily Causing Hurt or Grievous Hurt to Extort Confession, or to Compel Restoration of Property
Subsection (1):
Whoever voluntarily causes hurt for the purpose of extorting from the sufferer or from any person interested in the sufferer:
Any confession or any information which may lead to the detection of an offence or misconduct, or
For the purpose of constraining the sufferer or any person interested in the sufferer to restore or to cause the restoration of any property or valuable security or to satisfy any claim or demand, or to give information which may lead to the restoration of any property or valuable security
shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, and shall also be liable to fine.
Subsection (2):
Whoever voluntarily causes grievous hurt for any purpose referred to in sub-section (1), shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to fine.
๐งพ Illustrations
(a) A, a police officer, tortures Z in order to induce Z to confess that he committed a crime. A is guilty of an offence under this section.
(b) A, a police officer, tortures B to induce him to point out where certain stolen property is deposited. A is guilty of an offence under this section.
(c) A, a revenue officer, tortures Z in order to compel him to pay certain arrears of revenue due from Z. A is guilty of an offence under this section.
โ๏ธ Legal Context
Section 120 of the BNS, 2023, is part of Chapter VI, which deals with offences affecting the human body. This section aims to address and penalize acts where a person voluntarily causes hurt or grievous hurt to extort a confession or compel the restoration of property, thereby ensuring that such coercive methods are met with stringent legal consequences.
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