Section 307 punishes a person who commits theft after making preparation for causing death, hurt or restraint (or fear of any of these) to any person, whether in order to commit the theft, to escape after it, or to retain the stolen property. The punishment is rigorous imprisonment for up to ten years, and the offender is also liable to fine. The wording is the same as IPC Section 382.
Verified against the National Crime Records Bureau’s official BNS–IPC concordance (Sankalan Portal) and cross-checked directly against the bare text of both Acts. Section 307 maps to one section of the old Indian Penal Code, 1860, and is classed as Exact:
| BNS 307 | Covers | IPC, 1860 equivalent | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| 307 | Theft after preparation made for causing death, hurt or restraint in order to committing of theft | S.382 “Theft after preparation made for causing death, hurt or restraint in order to the committing of the theft” | Exact |
The two statutory texts were compared word by word. The operative words are the same: “Whoever commits theft, having made preparation for causing death, or hurt, or restraint, or fear of death, or of hurt, or of restraint, to any person, in order to the committing of such theft, or in order to the effecting of his escape after the committing of such theft, or in order to the retaining of property taken by such theft, shall be punished with rigorous imprisonment for a term which may extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to fine.” The only differences are cosmetic: the IPC has no comma before “or in order to the retaining” whereas the BNS has one, and the marginal heading is shortened from “in order to the committing of the theft” to “in order to committing of theft”. Illustration (a) differs only in one comma (IPC: “and, while committing this theft”; BNS: “and while committing this theft”), the BNS has a full stop after the word “Illustrations”, and Illustration (b) is identical. The ingredients and the punishment (rigorous imprisonment up to ten years and liability to fine) are unchanged.
Whoever commits theft, having made preparation for causing death, or hurt, or restraint, or fear of death, or of hurt, or of restraint, to any person, in order to the committing of such theft, or in order to the effecting of his escape after the committing of such theft, or in order to the retaining of property taken by such theft, shall be punished with rigorous imprisonment for a term which may extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to fine.
Illustrations.
(a) A commits theft on property in Z’s possession; and while committing this theft, he has a loaded pistol under his garment, having provided this pistol for the purpose of hurting Z in case Z should resist. A has committed the offence defined in this section.
(b) A picks Z’s pocket, having posted several of his companions near him, in order that they may restrain Z, if Z should perceive what is passing and should resist, or should attempt to apprehend A. A has committed the offence defined in this section.
Source: Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (Act No. 45 of 2023), as published in the Gazette of India Extraordinary.
Section 307 punishes theft coupled with preparation for violence. It applies when a person (i) commits theft and (ii) has, before or in the course of it, made preparation for causing (iii) death, hurt or restraint, or fear of death, hurt or restraint, to any person, and (iv) the preparation was made for one of three purposes: in order to the committing of the theft, in order to effecting his escape after the theft, or in order to retaining property taken by the theft. The theft itself must satisfy every ingredient of Section 303(1) — dishonest intention, movable property, another’s possession, no consent, and moving the property in order to take it.
The distinguishing feature is the preparation. The section does not require that death, hurt or restraint actually be caused, or even attempted; it is enough that the offender has made preparation to cause them, or to cause fear of them, for one of the three stated purposes. Both statutory Illustrations show what preparation looks like: in Illustration (a) the thief carries a loaded pistol under his garment, having provided it to hurt the owner if he resists; in Illustration (b) the pickpocket has posted companions near him so that they may restrain the owner if he perceives what is happening and resists or tries to apprehend the thief. In each case A “has committed the offence defined in this section” without any actual violence being described.
“Hurt” and “restraint” carry their meanings from the Sanhita’s wider text, and the section speaks of causing death, hurt or restraint and also of causing fear of each, so preparation aimed at intimidation is included. The three purposes are alternatives (joined by “or”) and cover the whole life of the theft: before and during it (to commit it), after it (to escape), and afterwards again (to retain the property). The person who is to be harmed or restrained need not be the owner; the words are “any person”.
Where hurt is voluntarily caused, or force or fear is used to obtain property, other provisions apply: extortion (Section 308), robbery (Section 309), and, for robbery or dacoity with an attempt to cause death or grievous hurt, Section 311. The difference to note is that Section 307 concerns theft accompanied by preparation, whereas those provisions concern actual conduct. Under the BNSS First Schedule the offence is cognizable, non-bailable and triable by a Magistrate of the first class (unlike Sections 303(2), 305 and 306, which any Magistrate may try). The punishment is rigorous imprisonment (not simple) for up to ten years, and the offender is also liable to fine. The offence is not listed in either compounding table of BNSS Section 359.
No. The section is satisfied by theft plus preparation for causing death, hurt or restraint (or fear of them) for one of the three stated purposes. Both statutory Illustrations describe an offender who has made preparation, a loaded pistol or posted companions, without any injury being described.
In order to the committing of the theft; in order to the effecting of the offender’s escape after the theft; or in order to the retaining of property taken by the theft. Any one of them is enough.
Rigorous imprisonment for a term which may extend to ten years, and the offender is also liable to fine. Under the BNSS First Schedule the offence is cognizable, non-bailable and triable by a Magistrate of the first class.
No. Section 307 does not appear in either compounding table of BNSS Section 359, so it cannot be compounded under that section.
The statutory wording and punishment are the same. In the operative sentence the only difference is a comma added before “or in order to the retaining of property”. The marginal heading is also shorter, and the two Illustrations differ in minor punctuation (“in order to committing of theft” instead of “in order to the committing of the theft”).