Injuring or defiling place of worship with intent to insult religion of any class
Section 298 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 deals with injuring or defiling place of worship with intent to insult religion of any class. Whoever destroys, damages or defiles any place of worship, or any object held sacred by any class of persons with the intention of thereby insulting the religion of any class of persons or with the knowledge that any class of persons is likely to consider such destruction, damage or defilement as an The Act came into force on 01 Jul 2024.
Whoever destroys, damages or defiles any place of worship, or any object held sacred by any class of persons with the intention of thereby insulting the religion of any class of persons or with the knowledge that any class of persons is likely to consider such destruction, damage or defilement as an insult to their religion, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to two years, or with fine, or with both.
Section 298, The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (Act 45 of 2023).
Replaces a provision of the Indian Penal Code
IPC 295 Injuring or defiling place of worship, with intent to insult the religion of any class Text carried over almost unchanged 92%
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 The repealed enactment still governs what happened while it was in force.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.
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.
| Offence | Punishment | Cognizable | Bailable | Triable by |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Defiling, etc., place of worship, with intent to insult the religion of any class. | Imprisonment for 2 years, or fine, or both. | Cognizable. | Non-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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State(tr)central Bureau of Investigation vs Shri Kalyan Singh(former Cm of Up)
Decided under Indian Penal Code 295, which this section replaces. The court did not have this Act before it.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
The Supreme Court of India has the power under Article 142 of the Constitution to transfer criminal proceedings from one Special Court to another Special Court under the same High Court jurisdiction to achieve complete justice and remedy procedural defects, provided such transfer does not violate mandatory substantive provisions of law. In cases involving crimes that shake the secular fabric of the Constitution and where procedural defects have prevented a unified trial of accused persons charged with criminal conspiracy in the course of the same transaction, the Supreme Court can exercise this power to consolidate fragmented proceedings and ensure that all accused are tried together for the conspiracy charge, even if some had been previously discharged from separate proceedings. The absence of a non-obstante clause in the relevant statutory provision (Section 11(1) proviso of the Criminal Procedure Code) distinguishes this case from situations where such a clause exists, and therefore the transfer does not violate the fundamental right to appeal under Article 21 of the Constitution.
On this section: Injuring or defiling place of public worship - Applied to the demolition of the mosque.
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Haji Mahboob Ahmad vs Kalyan Singh
Decided under Indian Penal Code 295, which this section replaces. The court did not have this Act before it.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
The Supreme Court of India has the constitutional power under Article 142 to transfer criminal proceedings from one court to another to remedy procedural defects and ensure complete justice, even when the High Court has statutory power under Section 407 of the Criminal Procedure Code to do so. This power can be exercised when crimes that shake the secular fabric of the Constitution have allegedly been committed and the accused persons have not been brought to book largely because of procedural defects and the conduct of the investigating agency. The transfer does not violate Article 21 of the Constitution because the procedure established by law itself contemplates such transfers under Section 407 of the Criminal Procedure Code, and the absence of a non-obstante clause in Section 11(1) proviso of the Criminal Procedure Code distinguishes this case from cases where substantive rights are infringed. Additionally, criminal conspiracy charges already contained in a joint charge sheet cannot be separated from the accused persons by discharging them, and all offences committed in the course of the same transaction to accomplish a conspiracy must be tried jointly.
On this section: Injuring or defiling place of public worship - applied to the demolition of the Babri Masjid
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Noel Dsouza vs State of Goa through the Police Insoector
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Non-compliance with the mandatory procedure of issuing notice under Section 35 BNSS (formerly 41A CrPC) before arrest in offences punishable with up to 7 years entitles the accused to bail.
On this section: Offence cited with 2-year punishment.
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 298
What have the courts held on Section 298 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita?
State(tr)central Bureau of Investigation vs Shri Kalyan Singh(former Cm of Up) (19 Apr 2017) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below, though it was decided under IPC 295, which this section replaced -- the court never mentioned this Act: Injuring or defiling place of public worship - Applied to the demolition of the mosque. Another 2 judgments on this section are set out below, 2 of them from the Supreme Court. They run from 2017 to 2024.
Is Section 298 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita bailable?
Non-bailable, under the First Schedule to the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023.
Is Section 298 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita cognizable?
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 298 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 298, section 298 BNS, section 298 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. People searching for it also type bns 298 to 302 and bns 298 in ipc. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 3 reported judgments on this section are set out on this page, beginning with State(tr)central Bureau of Investigation vs Shri Kalyan Singh(former Cm of Up) (19 Apr 2017).
What should I read with Section 298 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, and has it changed?
It carries forward IPC 295 (Injuring or defiling place of worship, with intent to insult the religion of any class), so the judgments decided under that provision are the case law on this one.
When did Section 298 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita come into force?
Section 298 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, cited as BNS 298, 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.
Other sections of this Act
- 2. Definitions2199 words
- 356. Defamation1543 words
- 335. Making a false document1318 words
- 101. Murder1177 words
- 303. Theft1104 words
- 3. General explanations858 words
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 15 Oct 2026. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.