Appeals from convictions under sections 383, 384, 388 and 389
Section 390 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 deals with appeals from convictions under sections 383, 384, 388 and 389. Any person sentenced by any Court other than a High Court under section 383, section 384, section 388, or section 389 may, notwithstanding anything contained in this Sanhita appeal to the Court to which decrees or orders made in such Court are ordinarily appealable. The Act came into force on 01 Jul 2024.
(1) Any person sentenced by any Court other than a High Court under section 383, section 384, section 388, or section 389 may, notwithstanding anything contained in this Sanhita appeal to the Court to which decrees or orders made in such Court are ordinarily appealable.
(2) The provisions of Chapter XXXI shall, so far as they are applicable, apply to appeals under this section, and the Appellate Court may alter or reverse the finding, or reduce or reverse the sentence appealed against.
(3) An appeal from such conviction by a Court of Small Causes shall lie to the Court of Session for the sessions division within which such Court is situate.
(4) An appeal from such conviction by any Registrar or Sub-Registrar deemed to be a Civil Court by virtue of a direction issued under section 386 shall lie to the Court of Session for the sessions division within which the office of such Registrar or Sub-Registrar is situate.
Section 390, The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (Act 46 of 2023).
Replaces a provision of the Code of Criminal Procedure
CRPC 351 Appeals from convictions under sections 344, 345, 349, and 350 Text carried over almost unchanged 96%
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 The repealed enactment still governs what happened while it was in force.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.
This section refers to
- s. 383 Summary procedure for trial for giving false evidence
- s. 384 Procedure in certain cases of contempt
- s. 386 When Registrar or Sub-Registrar to be deemed a Civil Court
- s. 388 Imprisonment or committal of person refusing to answer or produce document
- s. 389 Summary procedure for punishment for non-attendance by a witness in obedience to summons
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.
-
Shiv Saran Singh vs State
Decided under Code of Criminal Procedure 351, which this section replaces. The court did not have this Act before it.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
A witness cannot be convicted under Section 350 Cr.P.C. for non-appearance before court without establishing that he failed to appear without just excuse, and the court must follow the summary trial procedure prescribed under Section 350 Cr.P.C., including providing proper notice and opportunity to show cause before passing a conviction order.
On this section: Basis for criminal appeal against conviction by trial court
-
Pawan Kumar Gaud Son of Durgashankar vs State of Rajasthan
Decided under Code of Criminal Procedure 351, which this section replaces. The court did not have this Act before it.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
When a witness who initiates a criminal complaint and participates as an independent witness in trap proceedings subsequently turns hostile during trial and gives false evidence with the intention of saving the accused from criminal charges, the trial court is justified in issuing a show cause notice under Section 344 CrPC, provided the mandatory conditions are satisfied: (1) the court forms an opinion that the witness knowingly or willfully gave false evidence, (2) the court concludes that in the interest of justice the witness should be punished summarily, and (3) the witness is given reasonable opportunity to show cause. The High Court will not interfere with such action under Section 482 CrPC.
On this section: Appealability of orders under Section 344 CrPC - orders passed under Section 344 are appealable.
-
Arun Paswan vs State of Bihar
Decided under Code of Criminal Procedure 351, which this section replaces. The court did not have this Act before it.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
An appeal against an order directing the registration of contempt proceedings is premature and not maintainable when filed before the contempt proceedings are concluded. The appellate court cannot adjudicate on the merits of such an order at an intermediate stage; the proper course is to await the final outcome of the contempt proceedings and then appeal if aggrieved.
On this section: Basis for filing appeal against the Sessions Judge's order; the appeal is preferred under this section
-
Chimanlal Khushalbhai Patel vs State of Gujarat
Decided under Code of Criminal Procedure 351, which this section replaces. The court did not have this Act before it.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Where a witness's silence during examination-in-chief is followed by proper testimony and an unconditional apology, and where the witness is a first-time court attendee suffering from health issues, the trial court's finding of contempt of court may be set aside on appeal if it appears to be an overreaction to a trivial matter, particularly when the consequences of the punishment would cause severe hardship to the witness's family and livelihood. The appellate court should exercise discretion under Section 351(1) of the Criminal Procedure Code to quash such conviction when the trial court's approach is found to be unjust, improper, or unreasonable.
On this section: Grants appellate court discretion to quash or set aside orders passed by subordinate courts. The High Court exercised this discretion to quash the contempt conviction.
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 390
What have the courts held on Section 390 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita?
Shiv Saran Singh vs State (09 Oct 2025) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below, though it was decided under CRPC 351, which this section replaced -- the court never mentioned this Act: Basis for criminal appeal against conviction by trial court. Another 3 judgments on this section are set out below. They run from 2000 to 2025.
How do I find court cases under Section 390 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 390, section 390 BNSS, section 390 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita. People searching for it also type bns 390 section. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 4 reported judgments on this section are set out on this page, beginning with Shiv Saran Singh vs State (09 Oct 2025).
What should I read with Section 390 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and has it changed?
Its own text turns on section 383 (Summary procedure for trial for giving false evidence), section 384 (Procedure in certain cases of contempt), section 386 (When Registrar or Sub-Registrar to be deemed a Civil Court), section 388 (Imprisonment or committal of person refusing to answer or produce document), and on 1 further provision, so none of them can safely be read on its own. It carries forward CrPC 351 (Appeals from convictions under sections 344, 345, 349, and 350), so the judgments decided under that provision are the case law on this one.
When did Section 390 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita come into force?
Section 390 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, cited as BNSS 390, 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
- 359. Compounding of offences1355 words
- 187. Procedure when investigation cannot be completed in twenty-four hours1122 words
- 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 15 Oct 2026. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.