Omission to assist public servant when bound by law to give assistance
Section 222 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 deals with omission to assist public servant when bound by law to give assistance. Whoever, being bound by law to render or furnish assistance to any public servant in the execution of his public duty, intentionally omits to give such assistance,— (a) shall be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to one month, or with fine which may extend to two thousand The Act came into force on 01 Jul 2024.
Whoever, being bound by law to render or furnish assistance to any public servant in the execution of his public duty, intentionally omits to give such assistance,—
(a) shall be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to one month, or with fine which may extend to two thousand and five hundred rupees, or with both;
(b) and where such assistance be demanded of him by a public servant legally competent to make such demand for the purposes of executing any process lawfully issued by a Court or of preventing the commission of an offence, or suppressing a riot, or affray, or of apprehending a person charged with or guilty of an offence, or of having escaped from lawful custody, shall be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine which may extend to five thousand rupees, or with both.
Section 222, The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (Act 45 of 2023).
Replaces a provision of the Indian Penal Code
IPC 187 Omission to assist public servant when bound by law to give assistance Text carried over almost unchanged 98%
Measured by comparing the text of the two provisions, not taken from an official correspondence table — there is no machine-readable one. See both texts side by side before relying on it.
Both regimes are live. The repealed enactment still governs what happened while it was in force. We never redirect one to the other.
Cross-references
Extracted from the operative text of the enactments themselves. Every destination below exists in our corpus.
How this offence is classified
From the First Schedule to the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, which classifies every offence under the Sanhita. Cognizable means a police officer may arrest without warrant; bailable means bail is a matter of right rather than of the court's discretion. This section is classified 2 ways.
| Offence | Punishment | Cognizable | Bailable | Triable by |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Omission to assist public servant when bound by law to give such assistance. | Simple imprisonment for 1 month, or fine of 2,500 rupees, or both. | Non-cognizable. | Bailable. | Any Magistrate. |
| Wilfully neglecting to aid a public servant who demands aid in the execution of process, the prevention of offences, etc. | Simple imprisonment for 6 months, or fine of 5,000 rupees, or both. | Non-cognizable. | Bailable. | Any Magistrate. |
Related judgements & precedents
These are some judgments that construed this section, and hold precedence value. They hold authority on how to read, interpret and use this section.
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The State of Maharashtra vs Arshad Khan Pathan
Decided under Indian Penal Code 187, which this section replaces. The court did not have this Act before it.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Criminal process cannot be issued under Sections 174 and 187 IPC against a public servant for non-attendance at a meeting when: (1) the complainant has violated mandatory notice requirements prescribed in applicable circulars; (2) the accused employee is subject to service regulations of his own employer requiring prior permission to leave office; and (3) the notice given (telephonic message) is insufficient to comply with both the notice requirements and the employee's employer regulations. The complainant's own procedural violations negate the criminal liability of the accused.
On this section: Relates to omission to comply with an order duly promulgated by a public servant. The court found this section was not attracted because no valid order was issued with proper notice.
The holding above is the ratio decidendi as extracted from the judgment by eCourts India, reproduced unaltered — it is a rendering of the court's reasoning, not a substitute for its words. Read the order itself before relying on it.
Questions about Section 222
What have the courts held on Section 222 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita?
The State of Maharashtra vs Arshad Khan Pathan (06 Jan 2016) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below, though it was decided under IPC 187, which this section replaced -- the court never mentioned this Act: Relates to omission to comply with an order duly promulgated by a public servant. The court found this section was not attracted because no valid order was issued with proper notice.
Is Section 222 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita bailable?
Bailable, under the First Schedule to the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023.
Is Section 222 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita cognizable?
Non-cognizable. "Cognizable" means a police officer may arrest without warrant; "non-cognizable" that they may not. An offence under this section is triable by Any Magistrate.
How do I find court cases under Section 222 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita?
In judgments and charge sheets this section is written several ways, and each form finds a different set of orders. These search the full text of every order eCourtsIndia holds, best matches first: BNS 222, section 222 BNS, section 222 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. People searching for it also type bns 222 and 223 and 222 bns in ipc. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 1 reported judgment on this section is set out on this page, beginning with The State of Maharashtra vs Arshad Khan Pathan (06 Jan 2016).
What should I read with Section 222 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, and has it changed?
4 other provisions in this corpus refer back to it. It carries forward IPC 187 (Omission to assist public servant when bound by law to give assistance), so the judgments decided under that provision are the case law on this one.
When did Section 222 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita come into force?
Section 222 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, cited as BNS 222, came into force on 01 Jul 2024, having been enacted on 25 Dec 2023. It is in force as at the date shown on this page.
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Source and method. Compiled from the enactments of Parliament and of the State legislatures as published on India Code, and republished together with commentary and other original matter under section 52(1)(q)(ii) of the Copyright Act, 1957. Structured, cross-referenced and maintained by eCourtsIndia. Text as in force on 14 Oct 2026. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.