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BNS Chapter V – Offences Against the State (Sections 147–158)
Chapter V introduces a major change over the IPC: the replacement of sedition (Section 124A IPC) with a new sovereignty provision, and the addition of organised crime as a specific offence.
Key Provisions
Section 147 penalises waging war against the Government of India with death or life imprisonment. Section 150 replaces sedition with a provision targeting acts that excite secession, armed rebellion, or subversive activities against India. Words not intended to disturb public order do not attract liability. Section 152 is new: it defines organised crime syndicates and prescribes severe punishment, including death where the act results in loss of life.
End of Sedition as We Knew It
IPC Section 124A (sedition) penalised mere disaffection toward the government. Section 150 BNS requires a nexus to actual threats to sovereignty or armed rebellion, making the threshold higher and more constitutionally defensible following the Supreme Court concerns in S.G. Vombatkere v. Union of India (2022).
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