IPC ↔ BNS Comparison
Section-by-section mapping between the Indian Penal Code, 1860 and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.
Cheating
RenumberedIPC §420 has been re-codified as BNS §318(4). The substantive offence and seven-year maximum are preserved; the section now sits within a consolidated cheating chapter.
Whoever cheats and thereby dishonestly induces the person deceived to deliver any property to any person, or to make, alter or destroy the whole or any part of a valuable security, or anything which is signed or sealed, and which is capable of being converted into a valuable security, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, and shall also be liable to fine.
Whoever cheats and thereby dishonestly induces the person deceived to deliver any property to any person, or to make, alter or destroy the whole or any part of a valuable security, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, and shall also be liable to fine.
Legal implications
- Existing FIRs registered under IPC §420 prior to 1 July 2024 continue under the IPC.
- All new offences from 1 July 2024 must be registered under BNS §318(4).
- Punishment, cognizability and bail position remain materially the same.
Relevant precedents
Distinction between breach of contract and cheating — fraudulent intention at inception must be shown.
Cheating requires dishonest inducement; mere failure to keep a promise is not §420.