Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 — Section 95

Hiring, Employing or Engaging a Child to Commit an Offence

Section 95 punishes hiring, employing, or engaging a child to commit an offence, with imprisonment of either description of not less than three years, extending to ten years, and fine; if the offence is in fact committed, the person is also punished as if he had committed that offence himself. Hiring, employing, engaging, or using a child for sexual exploitation or pornography is covered within the section. This is a new provision, with no equivalent in the old Indian Penal Code, 1860.

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 lists Section 95 as a New Section with no old IPC equivalent, and cross-checked directly by searching the local IPC text for any provision addressing the hiring, employment, or engagement of a child to commit an offence — no such provision was found.

BNS section	IPC, 1860 equivalent	Category
95	—	No predecessor

This offence, including its explicit reach into hiring, employing, engaging, or using a child for sexual exploitation or pornography, is entirely new to the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

Quick Reference

Classified as follows in the First Schedule to the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS), quoted as that Schedule words each entry:

Hiring, employing or engaging a child to commit an offence: punishment — “Imprisonment for not less than 3 years but which may extend to 10 years and fine.” · cognizable or non-cognizable — “Cognizable.” · bailable or non-bailable — “Non-bailable.” · triable by — “Magistrate of the first class.”
If offence be committed: punishment — “Same as for the offence committed.” · cognizable or non-cognizable — “Cognizable.” · bailable or non-bailable — “Non-bailable.” · triable by — “Court by which offence committed is triable.”
Compoundable: Not listed in either compounding table of BNSS S.359.

Statutory Text (Verbatim)

Whoever hires, employs or engages any child to commit an offence shall be punished with imprisonment of either description which shall not be less than three years but which may extend to ten years, and with fine; and if the offence be committed shall also be punished with the punishment provided for that offence as if the offence has been committed by such person himself.

Explanation.—Hiring, employing, engaging or using a child for sexual exploitation or pornography is covered within the meaning of this section.

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)

Hiring, employing, or engaging a child to commit an offence

Explanation (Lexovia's Commentary)

Section 95 targets adults who use children as instruments to commit offences. The base punishment — imprisonment of not less than three years, extending to ten years, and fine — applies simply for the act of hiring, employing, or engaging a child for this purpose. If the underlying offence is actually carried out, the person faces an additional layer of liability: punishment as if he had committed that offence himself, alongside the base punishment for the hiring, employment, or engagement. The Explanation makes clear this section reaches hiring, employing, engaging, or using a child for sexual exploitation or pornography as well.

Illustration (Lexovia's Own Example)

A hires Z, a child, to commit theft on A's behalf, and Z does in fact commit the theft. A is liable under Section 95 both for hiring Z to commit an offence, and for the theft itself, punishable as if A had committed the theft personally.

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Related / Cross-Referenced Sections

FAQs

Is this a new offence under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita?

Yes. The concordance lists Section 95 as a new provision, with no equivalent under the old Indian Penal Code, 1860.

What happens if the child does not actually go on to commit the offence?

The base punishment for hiring, employing, or engaging the child — imprisonment of not less than three years, extending to ten years, and fine — still applies. The additional punishment "as if the offence has been committed by such person himself" applies only where the offence is actually committed.

Does Section 95 cover using a child for sexual exploitation or pornography?

Yes. The Explanation expressly states that hiring, employing, engaging, or using a child for sexual exploitation or pornography is covered within the meaning of the section.