Giving false evidence
Section 191 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 deals with giving false evidence. Whoever, being legally bound by an oath or by an express provision of law to state the truth, or being bound by law to make a declaration upon any subject, makes any statement which is false, and which he either knows or believes to be false or does not believe to be true, is said to give false evid The Act came into force on 01 Jan 1862. Repealed by section 358 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (45 of 2023) with effect from 1 July 2024, but conduct before that date is still charged, tried and appealed under it.
Whoever, being legally bound by an oath or by an express provision of law to state the truth, or being bound by law to make a declaration upon any subject, makes any statement which is false, and which he either knows or believes to be false or does not believe to be true, is said to give false evidence.
Explanation 1.-A statement is within the meaning of this section whether it is made verbally or otherwise.
Explanation 2.-A false statement as to the belief of the person attesting is within the meaning of this section, and a person may be guilty of giving false evidence by stating that he believes a thing which he does not believe, as well as by stating that he knows a thing which he does not know.
Illustrations
(a) A, in support of a just claim which B has against Z for one thousand rupees, falsely swears on a trial that he heard Z admit the justice of B's claim. A has given false evidence.
(b) A, being bound by an oath to state the truth, states that he believes a certain signature to be the handwriting of Z, when he does not believe it to be the handwriting of Z. Here A states that which he knows to be false, and therefore gives false evidence.
(c) A, knowing the general character of Z's handwriting, states that he believes a certain signature to be the handwriting of Z; A in good faith believing it to be so. Here A's statement is merely as to his belief, and is true as to his belief, and therefore, although the signature may not be the handwriting of Z, A has not given false evidence.
(d) A, being bound by an oath to state the truth, states that he knows that Z was at a particular place on a particular day, not knowing anything upon the subject. A gives false evidence whether Z was at that place on the day named or not.
(e) A, an interpreter or translator, gives or certifies as a true interpretation or translation of a statement or document, which he is bound by oath to interpret or translate truly, that which is not and which he does not believe to be a true interpretation or translation. A has given false evidence.
Section 191, The Indian Penal Code, 1860 (Act 45 of 1860).
Now in the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita
BNS 227 Giving false evidence 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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Perumal v. Janaki
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Judgment of Main Case order-6.pdf 2014-01-20. Crl A 169/2014. Sathasivam/Chelameswar. DATE-CHECK flagged 2010-08-31 / 2008-05-18 / 2010-03-15 trial dates (false positive); body is the named 20 Jan 2014 reportable. Extracts IPC 191: giving false evidence requires a statement on oath, under an express legal duty to state the truth, or a legally bound declaration. A police officer's charge-sheet is not s.191 false evidence (it may be s.211); a private complaint is barred by CrPC 195/340. Map ipc 191 + BNS 227 successor. Do not pad ipc 193/211 or crpc 195/340 (already filled). Do not pad ipc 192 (fabricating).
On this section: Giving false evidence under s.191 requires a statement on oath, under an express legal duty to state the truth, or a legally bound declaration; a police charge-sheet is not s.191 (Perumal).
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Madras High Court Advocates Association vs Dr. A. S. Anand, Hon'ble the C. J. I.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
When a person, particularly a member of the legal profession bound by oath, makes a false statement in an affidavit filed in support of judicial proceedings, knowing such statement to be false or not believing it to be true, and such statement is material to the issues before the court, the person is prima facie guilty of perjury under Section 193 of the Indian Penal Code. This holds even if the false statement relates to a matter that was previously determined by competent constitutional authority, provided the person had knowledge of such prior determination through judicial proceedings or official communications. Courts possess suo moto powers to initiate criminal prosecution for such perjury to maintain the sanctity and integrity of judicial proceedings.
On this section: Definition of giving false evidence - the court held that false statements in affidavits constitute false evidence within this section
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Satbir vs State of Haryana
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Statements made in good faith regarding the character and conduct of a person in the context of an official proceeding (such as objections invited by a government official during a selection process) are protected under the 5th Exception to Section 499 IPC and do not constitute defamation, even if the statements are not made in the context of a decided court case.
On this section: Sections relating to false evidence and false statements - the trial court considered these sections in framing charges against 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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… However, there is an expedient and urgent need to guard against irresponsible, unjustified and by far, brazen false accusations against the security personal." POSITION OF LAW : " Indian Penal Code Section 191. Giving false evidence.—Whoever, being legally bound by an oath or by an express provision of law to state the truth, or being bound by law to make a declaration upon any subject, makes any statement which is false, and which he either knows or believes to be false or does not believe to be true, is said to give …
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… credibility for deposing before the court on oath and requires to be dealt with in accordance with law and being a public servant who has taken oath to depose truth and only truth before this court has been attempting to depose incorrect and false statements which per se is not only perjury within the meaning of section 191 of Indian Penal Code but also committing contempt of court. Therefore, no need or occasion for recording further evidence of this witness and if need be, can be summoned later by the court for questioning. As of now, the witness is discharged. Witness is directed to remain present in the court hall. Call this …
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… as witnesses before civil, revenue or criminal courts and do one of two things: (i) intentionally give false evidence in any stage of the judicial proceeding or (ii) intentionally fabricate false evidence for the purpose of being used in any stage of the judicial proceeding. The first refers to an offence under Section 191/193 and the second to that under 192/193 of the Indian Penal Code. In respect of such offences when committed by a witness, action under s.479-A alone can be taken. The appellants were witnesses in the inquiry in the High Court and they had fabricated false evidence. If any prosecution was to be started against them …
Questions about Section 191
What have the courts held on Section 191 of the Indian Penal Code?
Perumal v. Janaki (20 Jan 2014) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: Giving false evidence under s.191 requires a statement on oath, under an express legal duty to state the truth, or a legally bound declaration; a police charge-sheet is not s.191 (Perumal). Another 2 judgments on this section are set out below, 2 of them from the Supreme Court. They run from 2001 to 2018.
How do I find court cases under Section 191 of the Indian Penal Code?
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: IPC 191, section 191 IPC, section 191 of the Indian Penal Code. People searching for it also type ipc 191(2) in hindi and ipc 191 3 in hindi. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 3 reported judgments on this section are set out on this page, beginning with Perumal v. Janaki (20 Jan 2014).
What should I read with Section 191 of the Indian Penal Code, and has it changed?
1 other provision in this corpus refers back to it. For anything done on or after 1 July 2024 the provision to read is BNS 227 (Giving false evidence), which replaced it; conduct before that date is still charged, tried and appealed under this section.
When did Section 191 of the Indian Penal Code come into force?
Section 191 of the Indian Penal Code, cited as IPC 191, came into force on 01 Jan 1862, having been enacted on 06 Oct 1860. It is no longer in force.
Other sections of this Act
- 499. Defamation1512 words
- 464. Making a false document1223 words
- 300. Murder1172 words
- 378. Theft980 words
- 108. Abettor745 words
- 403. Dishonest misappropriation of property727 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 7b7d4fe6-206b-4e33-81f1-b98b018acaf6). This page is not a substitute for legal advice.