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Section 4 – BNS: General Explanations
Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023
Act No. 45 of 2023 | In Force: 1st July, 2024
Chapter II – General Exceptions
Section 4. General Explanations
Throughout this Sanhita every definition of an offence, every penal provision and every illustration of every such definition or penal provision, shall be understood subject to the exceptions contained in the Chapter entitled “General Exceptions”, though those exceptions are not repeated in such definition, penal provision or illustration.
Illustrations
(a) The sections in this Sanhita which contain definitions of offences do not express that a child under seven years of age cannot commit such offences, but the definitions are to be understood subject to the general exception which provides that nothing shall be an offence which is done by a child under seven years of age.
(b) A, a police officer, without warrant, apprehends Z, who has committed murder. Here A is not guilty of the offence of wrongful confinement; for he was bound by law to apprehend Z, and therefore the case falls within the general exception which provides for acts done by a person bound by law.
Plain-English Explanation
Section 4 is a drafting economy provision. It means that every offence in the BNS must be read together with all the General Exceptions in Chapter II, even though each individual offence definition does not repeat those exceptions. So when you read “Whoever commits murder shall be punished”, you must mentally add: “unless one of the exceptions in Chapter II applies”. This keeps the code concise without sacrificing accuracy.
Source: The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (Act No. 45 of 2023). In force from 1st July 2024.
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