Order for notifying address of previously convicted offender
Section 356 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 deals with order for notifying address of previously convicted offender. When any person, having been convicted by a Court in India of an offence punishable under section 215, section 489A, section 489B, section 489C or section 489D of the Indian Penal Code,(45 of 1860) or of any offence punishable under Chapter XII or Chapter XVII of that Code, with imprisonment for a t The Act came into force on 01 Apr 1974. Repealed by section 531 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (46 of 2023) with effect from 1 July 2024, but conduct before that date is still charged, tried and appealed under it.
(1) When any person, having been convicted by a Court in India of an offence punishable under section 215, section 489A, section 489B, section 489C or section 489D of the Indian Penal Code,(45 of 1860) or of any offence punishable under Chapter XII or Chapter XVII of that Code, with imprisonment for a term of three years or upwards, is again convicted of any offence punishable under any of those sections or Chapters with imprisonment for a term of three years or upwards by any Court other than that of a Magistrate of the second class, such Court may, if it thinks fit, at the time of passing a sentence of imprisonment on such person, also order that his residence and any change of, or absence from, such residence after release be notified as hereinafter provided for a term not exceeding five years from the date of the expiration of such sentence.
(2) The provisions of sub-section (1) with reference to the
offences named therein, apply also to criminal conspiracies to commit such offences and to the abetment of such offences and attempts to commit them.
(3) If such conviction is set aside on appeal or otherwise, such order shall become void.
(4) An order under this section may also be made by an Appellate Court or by the High Court or Court of Session when exercising its powers of revision.
(5) The State Government may, by notification, make rules to carry out the provisions of this section relating to the notification of residence or change of, or absence from, residence by released convicts.
(6) Such rules may provide for punishment for the breach thereof and any person charged with a breach of any such rule may be tried by a Magistrate of competent jurisdiction in the district in which the place last notified by him as his place of residence is situated.
Section 356, The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (Act 2 of 1974).
Now in the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita
BNSS 394 Order for notifying address of previously convicted offender 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.
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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Mrs.a.dhanalakshmi vs The Superintendent of Prisons
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
When a convict is serving multiple sentences under different warrants, each warrant must be returned to the concerned court immediately upon expiry of the sentence term to which it relates, unless an order under Section 356 Cr.P.C. has been passed. The concurrent running of sentences does not exempt the prison authority from this mandatory obligation under Rule 624 of Tamil Nadu Prison Rules, 1983. The return of the warrant is a procedural and administrative requirement and does not automatically confer rights to remission or commutation.
On this section: Cited to establish that no order under this section was passed against the convict, thereby making warrant return mandatory under Rule 624 of Tamil Nadu Prison Rules.
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Gursewak Singh vs Jasvir Singh
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Where an accused person has been released on probation with conditions to maintain peace and harmony for a specified period, and the probation period has lapsed without repetition of the offence, no ground exists for interference with the probation order in criminal revision. The court will not disturb such orders when the conditions have been satisfied and the purpose of probation has been achieved.
On this section: Power to release on probation - basis for Additional Sessions Judge's order modifying sentence
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 356
What have the courts held on Section 356 of the Code of Criminal Procedure?
Mrs.a.dhanalakshmi vs The Superintendent of Prisons (23 Feb 2018) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: Cited to establish that no order under this section was passed against the convict, thereby making warrant return mandatory under Rule 624 of Tamil Nadu Prison Rules. Another 1 judgment on this section is set out below. They run from 2013 to 2018.
How do I find court cases under Section 356 of the Code of Criminal Procedure?
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: CRPC 356, section 356 CRPC, section 356 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. 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 Mrs.a.dhanalakshmi vs The Superintendent of Prisons (23 Feb 2018).
What should I read with Section 356 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, and has it changed?
Its own text turns on section 215 (Effect of errors), Indian Penal Code 489D (Making or possessing instruments or materials for forging or counterfeiting currency notes or bank-notes), so none of them can safely be read on its own. 1 other provision in this corpus refers back to it. For anything done on or after 1 July 2024 the provision to read is BNSS 394 (Order for notifying address of previously convicted offender), which replaced it; conduct before that date is still charged, tried and appealed under this section.
When did Section 356 of the Code of Criminal Procedure come into force?
Section 356 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, cited as CRPC 356, came into force on 01 Apr 1974, having been enacted on 25 Jan 1974. It is no longer in force.
Other sections of this Act
- 320. Compounding of offences1554 words
- 167. Procedure when investigation cannot be completed in twenty four hours1005 words
- 220. Trial for more than one offence962 words
- 360. Order to release on probation of good conduct or after admonition804 words
- 2. Definitions799 words
- 198. Prosecution for offences against marriage774 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. Recovered from the consolidated text published by India Code (item 330a1099-77ad-4a2e-b22a-769b33398f9e). This page is not a substitute for legal advice.