Appeal by State Government against sentence
Section 418 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 deals with appeal by State Government against sentence. Save as otherwise provided in sub-section (2), the State Government may, in any case of conviction on a trial held by any Court other than a High Court, direct the Public Prosecutor to present an appeal against the sentence on the ground of its inadequacy--- (a) to the Court of Session, if the sente The Act came into force on 01 Jul 2024.
(1) Save as otherwise provided in sub-section (2), the State Government may, in any case of conviction on a trial held by any Court other than a High Court, direct the Public Prosecutor to present an appeal against the sentence on the ground of its inadequacy---
(a) to the Court of Session, if the sentence is passed by the Magistrate; and
(b) to the High Court, if the sentence is passed by any other Court.
(2) If such conviction is in a case in which the offence has been investigated by any agency empowered to make investigation into an offence under any Central Act other than this Sanhita, the Central Government may also direct the Public Prosecutor to present an appeal against the sentence on the ground of its inadequacy---
(a) to the Court of Session, if the sentence is passed by the Magistrate; and
(b) to the High Court, if the sentence is passed by any other Court.
(3) When an appeal has been filed against the sentence on the ground of its inadequacy, the Court of Session or, as the case may be, the High Court shall not enhance the sentence except after giving to the accused a reasonable opportunity of showing cause against such enhancement and while showing cause, the accused may plead for his acquittal or for the reduction of the sentence.
(4) When an appeal has been filed against a sentence passed under section 64, section 65, section 66, section 67, section 68, section 70 or section 71 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, the appeal shall be disposed of within a period of six months from the date of filing of such appeal.
Section 418, The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (Act 46 of 2023).
Replaces a provision of the Code of Criminal Procedure
CRPC 377 Appeal by the State Government against sentence Text carried over almost unchanged 87%
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
- Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita s. 71 Punishment for repeat offenders
- s. 64 Summons how served
- s. 65 Service of summons on corporate bodies, firms, and societies
- s. 66 Service when persons summoned cannot be found
- s. 67 Procedure when service cannot be effected as before provided
- s. 68 Service on Government servant
- s. 70 Proof of service in such cases and when serving officer not present
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 vs Lalit Kumar Mittal
Decided under Code of Criminal Procedure 377, which this section replaces. The court did not have this Act before it.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Following the amendment to Section 377 of the Criminal Procedure Code, 1973, effective June 23, 2006, appeals against orders on sentence passed by Magistrate courts must be filed before and heard by the Court of Sessions, not the High Court. The High Court lacks jurisdiction to entertain such appeals post-amendment.
On this section: The procedural provision governing appeals against sentences. The order discusses the amendment to this section effective June 23, 2006, which changed the appellate forum from High Court to Sessions Court for Magistrate-level sentence appeals
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M.c.d. vs Rajesh Goyal
Decided under Code of Criminal Procedure 377, which this section replaces. The court did not have this Act before it.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
When an appellate court (Additional Sessions Judge) has upheld the conviction of an accused but modified the sentence, the High Court will not exercise its discretion to grant special leave to appeal unless there are compelling reasons based on the totality of facts and circumstances that demonstrate the need for interference.
On this section: Special leave to appeal provision invoked by the appellant to challenge the Additional Sessions Judge's order; the High Court exercised its discretion under this section to dismiss the petition
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 418
What have the courts held on Section 418 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita?
State vs Lalit Kumar Mittal (07 Sep 2006) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below, though it was decided under CRPC 377, which this section replaced -- the court never mentioned this Act: The procedural provision governing appeals against sentences. The order discusses the amendment to this section effective June 23, 2006, which changed the appellate forum from High Court to Sessions Court for Magistrate-level sentence appeals. Another 1 judgment on this section is set out below. They run from 2005 to 2006.
How do I find court cases under Section 418 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 418, section 418 BNSS, section 418 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita. People searching for it also type bns 418 4 in hindi and 418 bnss in crpc. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 2 reported judgments on this section are set out on this page, beginning with State vs Lalit Kumar Mittal (07 Sep 2006).
What should I read with Section 418 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and has it changed?
Its own text turns on Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 71 (Punishment for repeat offenders), section 64 (Summons how served), section 65 (Service of summons on corporate bodies, firms, and societies), section 66 (Service when persons summoned cannot be found), and on 3 further provisions, so none of them can safely be read on its own. 4 other provisions in this corpus refer back to it. It carries forward CrPC 377 (Appeal by the State Government against sentence), so the judgments decided under that provision are the case law on this one.
When did Section 418 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita come into force?
Section 418 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, cited as BNSS 418, 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 14 Oct 2026. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.