Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 — Section 155

Receiving Property Taken by War or Depredation Mentioned in Sections 153 and 154

Section 155 punishes receiving any property knowing it to have been taken in the commission of an offence under Section 153 or Section 154, with imprisonment up to seven years, fine, and forfeiture of the property received.

Please note: This page reflects our understanding of the law as of the date it was last reviewed. Parliament, the State Legislatures, and the courts continue to amend and interpret this law, and this page may not yet reflect the most recent change. Please verify the current text of the law independently, and consult a licensed advocate for advice on your own matter, before relying on this page.

Corresponding Provision Under Prior Law

Verified against the National Crime Records Bureau's official BNS–IPC concordance (Sankalan Portal), which maps Section 155 to old IPC Section 127, and cross-checked directly against the bare text of both Acts.

BNS section	IPC, 1860 equivalent	Category
155	127	Exact

Comparing the two texts word for word, Section 155 is reproduced without any substantive change from old IPC Section 127; the only difference is that its internal cross-reference has been renumbered from "sections 125 and 126" to "sections 153 and 154," tracking those provisions' corresponding renumbering under the BNS.

Quick Reference

Per the First Schedule to the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023: punishable with imprisonment for 7 years and fine, and forfeiture of certain property (the statute itself: imprisonment up to seven years, fine, and forfeiture of the property so received) — cognizable, non-bailable, and triable by the Court of Session.

Statutory Text (Verbatim)

Whoever receives any property knowing the same to have been taken in the commission of any of the offences mentioned in sections 153 and 154, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, and shall also be liable to fine and to forfeiture of the property so received.

Source: Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (Act No. 45 of 2023), as published in the Gazette of India Extraordinary.

Explanation & Illustration (Lexovia's Commentary — Not Statutory Text)

Knowingly receiving property taken through the Section 153 or 154 offences

Explanation (Lexovia's Commentary)

This section targets a receiver, not the person who actually waged the war or committed the depredation. Knowledge is the key ingredient: the accused must have received the property knowing it was taken through the commission of one of the offences described in Sections 153 (waging war against a friendly foreign State) or 154 (depredation on that State's territories). The property received is also liable to forfeiture, over and above imprisonment and fine.

Illustration (Lexovia's Own Example)

A person buys goods at a steep discount from someone who openly admits the goods were looted during a raid on the territory of a neighbouring country at peace with India. If the buyer knew this when purchasing, the buyer falls within Section 155, even though the buyer took no part in the raid itself.

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Related / Cross-Referenced Sections

FAQs

Does the receiver have to know exactly which offence the property came from?

The section requires knowledge that the property was taken in the commission of an offence mentioned in Sections 153 or 154 — that is, that it was obtained through the described acts of hostile war or depredation, not necessarily the precise legal label attached to the original conduct.

What happens to the property that is received?

Beyond imprisonment and fine, the section provides for forfeiture of the property so received.

Does this section apply if the person receiving the property did not know its origin?

No. Knowledge that the property was taken through one of the Section 153 or 154 offences is an essential ingredient of this offence.