Intercourse by a man with his wife during separation
Section 376A of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 deals with intercourse by a man with his wife during separation. Whoever has sexual intercourse with his own wife, who is living separately from him under a decree of separation or under any custom or usage without her consent shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to two years and shall also be liable to fine. 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 Repealed by section 358 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (45 of 2023) with effect from 1 July 2024, but conduct before that date is still charged, tried and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 has sexual intercourse with his own wife, who is living separately from him under a decree of separation or under any custom or usage without her consent shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to two years and shall also be liable to fine.
Section 376A, The Indian Penal Code, 1860 (Act 45 of 1860).
Now in the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita
BNS 67 Sexual intercourse by husband upon his wife during separation Close, with changes 72%
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 The repealed enactment still governs what happened while it was in force.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.
Referred to by 7
- Code of Criminal Procedure s. 27 Jurisdiction in the case of juveniles
- Code of Criminal Procedure s. 173 Report of police officer on completion of investigation
- Code of Criminal Procedure Act s. 28 Sentences which High Courts and Sessions Judges may pass
- Criminal Law (Aunachal Pradesh Amendment) Act 2018 s. 16
- Crpc 1973 s. 29 Sentences which Magistrates may pass
- Gujarat Prevention of Anti-social Activities Act s. 7
- s. 228A Disclosure of identity of the victim of certain offences, etc
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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Ravish Kumar vs The State of Bihar
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
When the police investigation absolved the accused of criminal involvement yet the court proceeds with cognizance and registration of the FIR based on the original complaint, the peculiar circumstances may justify granting anticipatory bail even for serious criminal offences, subject to appropriate conditions imposed by the trial court.
On this section: Offence of causing death or permanent vegetative state by act constituting culpable homicide by rash or negligent act during sexual assault, used here to describe charges against petitioner
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Ram Awadh Chaudhary vs State of Bihar& ANR.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
An appeal by the informant seeking enhancement of sentence from life imprisonment to death penalty is not maintainable under the proviso to Section 272 of the Criminal Procedure Code. When life imprisonment is awarded under Section 376A of the Penal Code for rape, it is not necessary for the court to award separate rigorous imprisonment for life under Section 302 or additional rigorous imprisonment under Section 201, as all sentences should run concurrently.
On this section: Life imprisonment for rape; primary sentencing provision applied
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State of Odisha vs Laba@kalia Manna
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
In a case of murder based on circumstantial evidence, when the chain of circumstances is complete and unerringly points to the guilt of the accused, conviction can be sustained. However, allegations of sexual assault cannot be inferred from genital injuries alone without scientific corroboration such as semen or DNA evidence. Furthermore, in determining whether death sentence should be imposed, the court must apply the 'rarest of rare' doctrine by balancing aggravating and mitigating circumstances, with life imprisonment being the rule and death sentence being the exception. Death sentence should be imposed only when there is something uncommon about the crime rendering life imprisonment altogether inadequate, and when there is no alternative but to impose death sentence even after according maximum weightage to mitigating circumstances. In cases based entirely on circumstantial evidence, the irrevocability of death sentence must be a definite factor at the sentencing stage.
On this section: Punishment for causing death or persistent vegetative state by act of rape; court acquitted accused as rape not established
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 376A
What have the courts held on Section 376A of the Indian Penal Code?
Ravish Kumar vs The State of Bihar (15 Mar 2023) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: Offence of causing death or permanent vegetative state by act constituting culpable homicide by rash or negligent act during sexual assault, used here to describe charges against petitioner. Another 2 judgments on this section are set out below, 1 of them from the Supreme Court. They run from 2014 to 2023.
How do I find court cases under Section 376A 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 376A, section 376A IPC, section 376A of the Indian Penal Code. People searching for it also type ipc 376a in bns and ipc 376ab. 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 Ravish Kumar vs The State of Bihar (15 Mar 2023).
What should I read with Section 376A of the Indian Penal Code, and has it changed?
7 other provisions in this corpus refer back to it. For anything done on or after 1 July 2024 the provision to read is BNS 67 (Sexual intercourse by husband upon his wife during separation), which replaced it; conduct before that date is still charged, tried and appealed under this section.
When did Section 376A of the Indian Penal Code come into force?
Section 376A of the Indian Penal Code, cited as IPC 376A, 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
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- 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.