Option of Court to hear parties
Section 444 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 deals with option of Court to hear parties. Save as otherwise expressly provided by this Sanhita, no party has any right to be heard either personally or by an advocate before any Court exercising its powers of revision; The Act came into force on 01 Jul 2024.
Save as otherwise expressly provided by this Sanhita, no party has any right to be heard either personally or by an advocate before any Court exercising its powers of revision; but the Court may, if it thinks fit, when exercising such powers, hear any party either personally or by an advocate.
Section 444, The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (Act 46 of 2023).
Replaces a provision of the Code of Criminal Procedure
CRPC 403 Option of Court to hear parties Text carried over almost unchanged 95%
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 The repealed enactment still governs what happened while it was in force.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.
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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Deepharma Ltd. vs The Chief Enforcement Officer
Decided under Code of Criminal Procedure 403, which this section replaces. The court did not have this Act before it.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
When an accused person is exonerated on merits in departmental adjudication proceedings on identical charges and facts, and the departmental authorities themselves record a categorical and unambiguous finding that there is no contravention of the provisions of the Act, it would be unjust and an abuse of process of law to allow criminal proceedings to continue against such person on the same allegations and facts. However, if the exoneration in departmental proceedings is on technical grounds or by giving benefit of doubt and not on merits, or if the adjudication proceedings were on different facts, the criminal proceedings can continue. The test is whether: (1) charges in departmental and criminal proceedings are identical, and (2) exoneration in departmental proceedings is on merits holding that there is no contravention of the provisions of any Act.
On this section: Double jeopardy protection; whether applicable to departmental and criminal proceedings
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Hemant Saxena vs State of Rajasthan through P.p.
Decided under Code of Criminal Procedure 403, which this section replaces. The court did not have this Act before it.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
A revisional court must hear all parties and consider all material submissions, including counter-complaints filed under Section 340 CrPC, before deciding a revision petition. Failure to do so violates the principles of natural justice and renders the order procedurally defective and liable to be set aside by the High Court under Section 482 CrPC.
On this section: Complainant Ratan Lal Goyal submitted an application under this section for impleading himself as a party-respondent, which was allowed by the revisional court
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 444
What have the courts held on Section 444 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita?
Deepharma Ltd. vs The Chief Enforcement Officer (20 Dec 2006) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below, though it was decided under CRPC 403, which this section replaced -- the court never mentioned this Act: Double jeopardy protection; whether applicable to departmental and criminal proceedings. Another 1 judgment on this section is set out below. They run from 2006 to 2012.
How do I find court cases under Section 444 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 444, section 444 BNSS, section 444 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita. People searching for it also type sec 444 bnss. 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 Deepharma Ltd. vs The Chief Enforcement Officer (20 Dec 2006).
What should I read with Section 444 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and has it changed?
It carries forward CrPC 403 (Option of Court to hear parties), so the judgments decided under that provision are the case law on this one.
When did Section 444 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita come into force?
Section 444 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, cited as BNSS 444, 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.