Procedure on order being made absolute and consequences of disobedience
Section 160 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 deals with procedure on order being made absolute and consequences of disobedience. When an order has been made absolute under section 155 or section 157, the Magistrate shall give notice of the same to the person against whom the order was made, and shall further require him to perform the act directed by the order within the time to be fixed in the notice, and inform him that, in The Act came into force on 01 Jul 2024.
(1) When an order has been made absolute under section 155 or section 157, the Magistrate shall give notice of the same to the person against whom the order was made, and shall further require him to perform the act directed by the order within the time to be fixed in the notice, and inform him that, in case of disobedience, he shall be liable to the penalty provided by section 223 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.
(2) If such act is not performed within the time fixed, the Magistrate may cause it to be performed, and may recover the costs of performing it, either by the sale of any building, goods or other property removed by his order, or by the distress and sale of any other movable property of such person within or without such Magistrate's local jurisdiction, and if such other property is without such jurisdiction, the order shall authorise its attachment and sale when endorsed by the Magistrate within whose local jurisdiction the property to be attached is found.
(3) No suit shall lie in respect of anything done in good faith under this section.
Section 160, The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (Act 46 of 2023).
Replaces a provision of the Code of Criminal Procedure
CRPC 141 Procedure on order being made absolute and consequences ofdisobedience Text carried over almost unchanged 91%
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 The repealed enactment still governs what happened while it was in force.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.
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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P.p.hamsa vs M.n.kunharamutty Haji
Decided under Code of Criminal Procedure 141, which this section replaces. The court did not have this Act before it.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Under the scheme of Chapter XB Cr.P.C., an order under section 141 Cr.P.C. consequent on disobedience of a final order under section 138 Cr.P.C. can be passed only against the person against whom the final order under section 138 was passed. A tenant in actual possession of a building is a necessary party to proceedings under section 133 Cr.P.C., and no order can be effectively passed without giving notice to the occupant. Therefore, an order passed against a landlord cannot be enforced against a tenant by initiating section 141 proceedings unless a separate final order under section 138 has been passed in proceedings where the tenant was also a party.
On this section: Section 141 Cr.P.C. provides for punishment for disobedience of orders under Chapter XB. The court held that section 141 proceedings can only be initiated against the person against whom the final order under section 138 was passed, not against third parties like tenants.
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Raju Pundhir @ Raju Singh Pundhir vs State of U.p.and Another
Decided under Code of Criminal Procedure 141, which this section replaces. The court did not have this Act before it.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
An order passed under Section 133 CrPC for removal of nuisance must be preceded by an opportunity to the affected person to appear and show cause under Section 135 CrPC, and the Executive Magistrate must follow the procedure prescribed under Sections 134-140 CrPC before passing a final order under Section 141 CrPC. Failure to provide such opportunity and follow the prescribed procedure renders the order violative of natural justice and liable to be quashed by the High Court under Section 482 CrPC.
On this section: Final order to be passed by Executive Magistrate after following prescribed procedure
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P.srinivasa Rao vs The Mandal Executive Magistrate-cum-mandal Revenue
Decided under Code of Criminal Procedure 141, which this section replaces. The court did not have this Act before it.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
When an industrial unit has obtained prior permissions from all competent authorities after they have considered potential nuisance and prescribed specific mitigation measures, a magistrate's order under Section 141 Cr.P.C. directing relocation of the unit cannot be sustained if the unit is complying with the prescribed conditions. The magistrate must consider and give weight to prior administrative approvals and the specific pollution control measures mandated by regulatory authorities before ordering relocation of an industrial establishment.
On this section: Applied by magistrate to issue final order dated May 8, 2003 directing relocation of rice mill; this is the impugned order subject to revision
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 160
What have the courts held on Section 160 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita?
P.p.hamsa vs M.n.kunharamutty Haji (01 Oct 2007) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below, though it was decided under CRPC 141, which this section replaced -- the court never mentioned this Act: Section 141 Cr.P.C. provides for punishment for disobedience of orders under Chapter XB. The court held that section 141 proceedings can only be initiated against the person against whom the final order under section 138 was passed, not against third parties like tenants. Another 2 judgments on this section are set out below. They run from 2007 to 2022.
How do I find court cases under Section 160 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha 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: BNSS 160, section 160 BNSS, section 160 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita. People searching for it also type 160 bnss act and bns 160 1. 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 P.p.hamsa vs M.n.kunharamutty Haji (01 Oct 2007).
What should I read with Section 160 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and has it changed?
Its own text turns on Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 223 (Disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), section 155 (Penalty for failure to comply with section 154), section 157 (Procedure where person against whom order is made under section 152 appears to show-cause), so none of them can safely be read on its own. It carries forward CrPC 141 (Procedure on order being made absolute and consequences ofdisobedience), so the judgments decided under that provision are the case law on this one.
When did Section 160 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita come into force?
Section 160 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, cited as BNSS 160, 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
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- 2. Definitions956 words
- 243. Trial for more than one offence930 words
- 35. When police may arrest without warrant881 words
- 480. When bail may be taken in case of non-bailable offence823 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 14 Oct 2026. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.