Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023
Section 44, BNS: Right of private defence against deadly assault when there is risk of harm to innocent person
Section 44 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, in the Act's own words, with the IPC provision it replaces.
What it replaces
| BNS provision | IPC provision | Relation |
|---|---|---|
| Section 44 | Section 106 | corresponds |
From the Bureau of Police Research and Development's official comparison summary (source below). The whole table: IPC to BNS.
The section
44. Right of private defence against deadly assault when there is risk of harm to innocent person.
If in the exercise of the right of private defence against an assault which reasonably causes the apprehension of death, the defender be so situated that he cannot effectually exercise that right without risk of harm to an innocent person, his right of private defence extends to the running of that risk. Illustration. A is attacked by a mob who attempt to murder him. He cannot effectually exercise his right of private defence without firing on the mob, and he cannot fire without risk of harming young children who are mingled with the mob. A commits no offence if by so firing he harms any of the children.The text is India Code's consolidated text as loaded into Pundora's statute corpus on 1 September 2026. A section quoted in a draft checked by Pundora is checked against this text.
Sources
- India Code: Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, section 44 (read 1 September 2026)
- Bureau of Police Research and Development: comparison summary, BNS to IPC (read 1 September 2026)