Criminal Law: BNS General Exceptions and Offence Analysis
The Criminal Law paper now sits at a transition point. The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 replaced the Indian Penal Code from 1 July 2024, but older official papers and question banks still use IPC numbers, so you must be able to map both: murder was s.302 IPC and is now punished under s.103(1) BNS; cheating was s.415/420 IPC and is now s.318; criminal breach of trust is s.316; theft is s.303.
Core rules
- The general exceptions (BNS ss.14–44) are the accused's burden on a preponderance of probabilities, while the prosecution must still prove its case beyond reasonable doubt.
- Culpable homicide is defined in s.100 BNS; the definition of murder and its five Exceptions are in s.101, punished under s.103, and culpable homicide not amounting to murder is punished under s.105.
- Joint liability divides: s.190 BNS (common intention, earlier s.34 IPC) needs a pre-arranged plan and prior meeting of minds; s.191 BNS (common object, earlier s.149 IPC) needs an unlawful assembly of five or more.
- Attempt under s.62 BNS requires an act proximate to the offence, not mere preparation.
Worked example
A and B quarrel over a boundary; B slaps A; A stabs B once in the abdomen and B dies. Is it murder or culpable homicide not amounting to murder? Exception 4 to s.101 requires a sudden fight, absence of premeditation, and no undue advantage. On these facts a single blow in a sudden quarrel, with no prior planning, brings the case within s.101 Exception 4, punishable under s.105 BNS - not s.103.
Traps
Assuming s.190 BNS can be applied to a single accused acting alone; mixing the common object of s.191 with the common intention of s.190; and forgetting that a general exception, once raised, does not shift the ultimate burden of proof onto the accused.