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Section363
The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973

Copy of judgement to be given to the accused and other persons

Repealed From 01 Apr 1974 Act 2 of 1974 As on 17 Oct 2026

Act 2 of 1974 Ministry Home Affairs Enacted 25 Jan 1974 In force 01 Apr 1974

This provision is repealed. Repealed by section 531 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (46 of 2023) with effect from 1 July 2024. It is reproduced because conduct before that date is still charged, tried and appealed under it.

Section 363 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 deals with copy of judgement to be given to the accused and other persons. When the accused is sentenced to imprisonment, a copy of the judgment shall, immediately after the pronouncement of the judgment, be given to him free of cost. 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 Repealed by section 531 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (46 of 2023) with effect from 1 July 2024, but conduct before that date is still charged, tried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 the accused is sentenced to imprisonment, a copy of the judgment shall, immediately after the pronouncement of the judgment, be given to him free of cost.

(2) On the application of the accused, a certified copy of the judgment, or when he so desires, a translation in his own language if practicable or in the language of the Court, shall be given to him without delay, and

such copy shall, in every case where the judgment is appealable by the accused, be given free of cost :

Provided that where a sentence of death is passed or confirmed by the High Court, a certified copy of the judgment shall be immediately given to the accused free of cost whether or not he applies for the same.

(3) The provisions of sub-section (2) shall apply in relation to an order under section 117 as they apply in relation to a judgment which is appealable by the accused.

(4) When the accused is sentenced to death by any Court and an appeal lies from such judgment as of right, the Court shall inform him of the period within which, if he wishes to appeal, his appeal should be preferred.

(5) Save as otherwise provided in sub-section (2), any person affected by a judgment or order passed by a Criminal Court shall, on an application made in this behalf and on payment of the prescribed charges, be given a copy of such judgment or order or of any deposition or other part of the record :

Provided that the Court may, if it thinks fit for some special

reason, give it to him free of cost.

(6) The High Court may, by rules, provide for the grant of copies of any judgment or order of a Criminal Court to any person who is not affected by a judgment or order, on payment, by such person, of such fees, and subject to such conditions, as the High Court may, by such rules, provide.

Section 363, The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (Act 2 of 1974).

Now in the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita

BNSS 404 Copy of judgment to be given to accused and other persons Text carried over almost unchanged 94%

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

  1. s. 117 Order to give security

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.

  1. Dr. Rajesh Verma vs Sri Trinath Gorh

    Chief Judicial Magistrate 07 Oct 2025 Persuasive (District Court)

    Court's Decision & Legal Precedent

    In cheque dishonour cases under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, once the complainant establishes prima facie that a cheque was issued and dishonoured, statutory presumptions under Sections 118 and 139 arise in favour of the holder. The burden then shifts to the accused to rebut these presumptions by leading cogent and credible evidence demonstrating that no legally enforceable debt existed or that the cheque was not issued in discharge of such debt. Mere denial or plausible explanation by the accused is insufficient; the accused must necessarily disprove the prosecution case through substantive evidence. Failure to put suggestions to the complainant during cross-examination or to adduce defence evidence results in acceptance of the complainant's version and conviction of the accused.

    On this section: Procedure for providing copy of judgment. The court directed that a copy of the judgment be given to the convict free of cost as per this provision.

    Read the full order on eCourts India

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.

  1. Supreme Court of India 19 Feb 2020 SCIN010013552020

    … Section 362 Cr.P.C. begins with the word " save as otherwise provided by this Code or by any other law for the time being in force" . The above expression clearly means that rigour as contained in Section 363 Cr.P.C. is relaxed in following two conditions: - - i) Save as otherwise provided by the code of Criminal Procedure. - ii) any other law for the time being in force. 21. We need to first examine as to whether the orders passed in present case are covered by the exception i.e. "save as otherwise provided by the …

    Read this order on eCourtsIndia

Questions about Section 363

What have the courts held on Section 363 of the Code of Criminal Procedure?

Dr. Rajesh Verma vs Sri Trinath Gorh (07 Oct 2025) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: Procedure for providing copy of judgment. The court directed that a copy of the judgment be given to the convict free of cost as per this provision.

How do I find court cases under Section 363 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 363, section 363 CRPC, section 363 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. People searching for it also type crpc 363 in bnss and crpc 363 1. 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 Dr. Rajesh Verma vs Sri Trinath Gorh (07 Oct 2025).

What should I read with Section 363 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, and has it changed?

Its own text turns on section 117 (Order to give security), so none of them can safely be read on its own. For anything done on or after 1 July 2024 the provision to read is BNSS 404 (Copy of judgment to be given to accused and other persons), which replaced it; conduct before that date is still charged, tried and appealed under this section.

When did Section 363 of the Code of Criminal Procedure come into force?

Section 363 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, cited as CRPC 363, 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

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.