Presumption as to certain offences
Section 115 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 deals with presumption as to certain offences. Where a person is accused of having committed any offence specified in sub-section (2), in-- (a) any area declared to be a disturbed area under any enactment for the time being in force, making provision for the suppression of disorder and restoration and maintenance of public order; The Act came into force on 01 Jul 2024.
(1) Where a person is accused of having committed any offence specified in sub-section (2), in--
(a) any area declared to be a disturbed area under any enactment for the time being in force, making provision for the suppression of disorder and restoration and maintenance of public order; or
(b) any area in which there has been, over a period of more than one month, extensive disturbance of the public peace,
and it is shown that such person had been at a place in such area at a time when firearms or explosives were used at or from that place to attack or resist the members of any armed forces or the forces charged with the maintenance of public order acting in the discharge of their duties, it shall be presumed, unless the contrary is shown, that such person had committed such offence.
(2) The offences referred to in sub-section (1) are the following, namely:--
(a) an offence under section 147, section 148, section 149 or section 150 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023;
(b) criminal conspiracy or attempt to commit, or abetment of, an offence under section 149 or section 150 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.
Section 115, The Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 (Act 47 of 2023).
Replaces a provision of the Indian Evidence Act
IEA 111A Presumption as to certain offences Text carried over almost unchanged 100%
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 The repealed enactment still governs what happened while it was in force.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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Javed @ Java Ahmed Mohammed Akbar Bhatt& ORS. vs The State of Maharashtra
Decided under Indian Evidence Act 111A, which this section replaces. The court did not have this Act before it.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
The Division Bench held that the presumption against a person accused of collecting arms to wage war can be drawn only if the prosecution first proves that the accused was in an area declared to be a disturbed area and that firearms or explosives were used there to attack or resist the armed forces or forces charged with maintaining public order; neither having been established, no presumption could be drawn and the conviction under section 122 IPC was set aside.
On this section: Treats the statutory presumption now in BSA section 115 as conditional, and identifies the two facts the prosecution must prove before the burden shifts to the accused.
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.
Judgments citing this section
These may be obiter dicta or a precedent, for you to study. These are the judgments where this section is quoted.
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… Estoppel has been defined under the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 ( pari materia to Section 121 of Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023) as under: > "Section 115. When one person has, by his declaration, act or omission, intentionally caused or permitted another person to believe a thing to be true and to act upon such belief, neither he nor his representative shall be allowed, in any suit or proceeding between himself and such person or his representative, to deny the truth …
Questions about Section 115
What have the courts held on Section 115 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam?
Javed @ Java Ahmed Mohammed Akbar Bhatt& ORS. vs The State of Maharashtra (11 Dec 2006) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below, though it was decided under IEA 111A, which this section replaced -- the court never mentioned this Act: Treats the statutory presumption now in BSA section 115 as conditional, and identifies the two facts the prosecution must prove before the burden shifts to the accused.
How do I find court cases under Section 115 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam?
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: BSA 115, section 115 BSA, section 115 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam. People searching for it also type bsa 115 2 and bsa 115 year patch. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 1 reported judgment on this section is set out on this page, beginning with Javed @ Java Ahmed Mohammed Akbar Bhatt& ORS. vs The State of Maharashtra (11 Dec 2006).
What should I read with Section 115 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, and has it changed?
Its own text turns on Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 150 (Concealing with intent to facilitate design to wage war), section 147 (Evidence as to matters in writing), section 148 (Cross examination as to previous statements in writing), section 149 (Questions lawful in cross examination), so none of them can safely be read on its own. It carries forward IEA 111A (Presumption as to certain offences), so the judgments decided under that provision are the case law on this one.
When did Section 115 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam come into force?
Section 115 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, cited as BSA 115, 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
- 26. Cases in which statement of relevant fact by person who is dead or cannot be found, etc., is relevant1128 words
- 12. Facts showing existence of state of mind, or of body or bodily feeling1076 words
- 95. Exclusion of evidence of oral agreement815 words
- 2. Definitions794 words
- 6. Motive, preparation and previous or subsequent conduct773 words
- 63. Admissibility of electronic records764 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.