BNS Section 295: Sale, etc., of obscene objects to child (formerly IPC 293)
Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 · in force from 1 July 2024
BNS 295: Sale, etc., of obscene objects to child
From 1 July 2024
Whoever sells, lets to hire, distributes, exhibits or circulates to any child any such obscene object as is referred to in section 294, or offers or attempts so to do, shall be punished on first conviction with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to three years, and with fine which may extend to two thousand rupees, and, in the event of a second or subsequent conviction, with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, and also with fine which may extend to five thousand rupees.
What it replaced in the IPC
BNS 295 ← IPC 293 · Sale, etc., of obscene objects to young personChanged
BPR&D's comparison records a change. Read what changed before relying on the old wording.
What changed, per BPR&D: “person under the age of twenty years” is replaced by “child”, thereby curtailing the scope of this provision.
Printed in both official correspondence tables (BPR&D and NCRB).
Whoever sells, lets to hire, distributes, exhibits or circulates to any person under the age of twenty years any such obscene object as is referred to in the last preceding section, or offers or attempts so to do, shall be punished [on first conviction with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to three years, and with fine which may extend to two thousand rupees, and, in the event of a second or subsequent conviction, with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, and also with fine which may extend to five thousand rupees].]
Which one applies
An offence is governed by the law in force when it was committed. An offence committed before 1 July 2024 is charged and punished under the IPC; one committed on or after that date, under the BNS. Section 358 of the BNS, which repeals the IPC, preserves every liability and proceeding already incurred under it.
Read BNS section 358 →Judgments decided under IPC 293
They remain the law on IPC 293. Where the provision changed in the move, read what changed before relying on one for an offence after 1 July 2024.
Sources
- Correspondence Table and Comparison Summary of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 to the Indian Penal Code, 1860, Bureau of Police Research & Development, Ministry of Home Affairs, page 29.
- Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023: bare Act with Corresponding Section Table, National Crime Records Bureau (Sankalan), page 59.
- The Indian Penal Code, 1860 (Act 45 of 1860), as amended, India Code, Legislative Department, Ministry of Law and Justice.
BPR&D is the Bureau of Police Research & Development (Ministry of Home Affairs); NCRB the National Crime Records Bureau. Their correspondence tables are training aids, not law. This page is general information, not legal advice on any case; the bare Acts as published by the Government of India are the authority.