Criminal Law (BNS, BNSS and Evidence Law)
Criminal Law questions combine the general part (mens rea, attempt, abetment, common intention) with procedural and evidentiary rules. Since 1 July 2024 the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS), Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS) and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 (BSA) replace the IPC, CrPC and Evidence Act; the principles survive, but citations must be updated.
Core rules
- Mens rea and actus reus must concur; the BNS retains intention, knowledge and rashness as mental elements.
- Culpable homicide (BNS s.100) is the genus; murder (s.101, punishable under s.103) is the species, read with the five clauses and five exceptions. Knowledge alone usually falls short of murder.
- Attempt requires proximity: the last-act test and locus poenitentiae limit liability.
- Common intention (BNS s.3(5), formerly IPC s.34) needs a prior meeting of minds, not mere presence.
- Evidence: the prosecution bears the burden (BSA ss.101–104); confessions to police are inadmissible (BSA s.23); dying declarations are admissible without oath; electronic records need the certificate under BSA s.63. Reverse burdens operate in POCSO, NDPS and PMLA.
Worked example
A fires at B from ten metres intending to kill; B survives. The offence is attempt to murder because the act went beyond preparation and the intention was to cause death. If B dies, the case moves to BNS s.103; the defence may invoke Exception 1 (grave and sudden provocation) or Exception 4 (sudden fight), each reducing murder to culpable homicide not amounting to murder. Whether there was a sudden quarrel is a question of fact, but the legal effect is fixed.
Traps
- Using IPC section numbers for conduct after 1 July 2024.
- Treating knowledge as sufficient for murder.
- Confusing common intention (s.3(5) BNS) with common object in unlawful assembly.