Issuing or signing false certificate
Section 197 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 deals with issuing or signing false certificate. Whoever issues or signs any certificate required by law to be given or signed, or relating to any fact of which such certificate is by law admissible in evidence, knowing or believing that such certificate is false in any material point, shall be punished in the same manner as if he gave false evide 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 Repealed by section 358 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (45 of 2023) with effect from 1 July 2024, but conduct before that date is still charged, tried and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 issues or signs any certificate required by law to be given or signed, or relating to any fact of which such certificate is by law admissible in evidence, knowing or believing that such certificate is false in any material point, shall be punished in the same manner as if he gave false evidence.
Section 197, The Indian Penal Code, 1860 (Act 45 of 1860).
Now in the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita
BNS 234 Issuing or signing false certificate 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 The repealed enactment still governs what happened while it was in force.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.
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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H.d.f.c. Bank Ltd. through Mr. Jayanta Banerjee& ANR. vs State of Bihar& ANR.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
The Indian Penal Code does not contemplate vicarious liability on the part of a party who is not directly charged for commission of an offence. When a dispute arises from employment termination and the complainant seeks to convert it into a criminal case by making allegations of defamation and fraud against corporate officials without establishing their direct personal involvement in the alleged wrongdoing, such FIR constitutes malicious prosecution and abuse of process of law and is liable to be quashed. The availability of civil remedies for employment disputes precludes the invocation of criminal law for the same cause of action.
On this section: Cited regarding prosecution of public servants; court examined whether this section applied to the accused officials
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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… of having committed offences under Section 167 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (for short "the IPC") by forging the report of the Committee constituted to inquire into the appellant's complaint of sexual harassment. The trial court refused to issue summons to the private respondents for the lack of sanction under Section 197 of the Cr.P.C. and the High Court upheld the order of trial court. 84. Before we go into the merits of the contentions, we note that the Department had already ruled on the appellant's request for sanction vide a detailed order dated 10.2.2012. That order has been brought on record by the respondents and we …
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… CC no. 63/1C/2015) of the second respondent (complainant), the petitioner (along with certain others) has been summoned by the Metropolitan Magistrate, by her order dated 18.01.2018, to appear as an accused and be answerable on accusations of complicity in certain acts statedly constituting offences punishable under Sections 197 and 198 read with Section 34 of Indian Penal Code, 1860 (IPC). The petitioner had assailed the said summoning order in the court of Sessions by criminal revision no. 739/2018 but without success, his petition having been dismissed by its order dated 09.01.2019. 2. Feeling aggrieved, he has come up invoking the …
Questions about Section 197
What have the courts held on Section 197 of the Indian Penal Code?
H.d.f.c. Bank Ltd. through Mr. Jayanta Banerjee& ANR. vs State of Bihar& ANR. (29 Aug 2022) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: Cited regarding prosecution of public servants; court examined whether this section applied to the accused officials.
How do I find court cases under Section 197 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 197, section 197 IPC, section 197 of the Indian Penal Code. 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 H.d.f.c. Bank Ltd. through Mr. Jayanta Banerjee& ANR. vs State of Bihar& ANR. (29 Aug 2022).
What should I read with Section 197 of the Indian Penal Code, and has it changed?
For anything done on or after 1 July 2024 the provision to read is BNS 234 (Issuing or signing false certificate), which replaced it; conduct before that date is still charged, tried and appealed under this section.
When did Section 197 of the Indian Penal Code come into force?
Section 197 of the Indian Penal Code, cited as IPC 197, 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.