Section 492
Section 492 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860. [Breach of contract to serve at distant place to which servant is conveyed at master's expense.] Rep. 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 Repealed by section 358 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (45 of 2023) with effect from 1 July 2024, but conduct before that date is still charged, tried and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.
[Breach of contract to serve at distant place to which servant is conveyed at master's expense.] Rep. by the Workmen's Breach of Contract (Repealing) Act, 1925 (3 of 1925), s. 2 and Sch.
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OF OFFENCES RELATING TO MARRIAGE
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OF OFFENCES RELATING TO MARRIAGE
Section 492, The Indian Penal Code, 1860 (Act 45 of 1860).
Now in the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita
No provision of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita is textually close to this one. No close match found
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 The repealed enactment still governs what happened while it was in force.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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Suresh& ORS. vs Civil Judge Jd Judicial Magistrate and Anotehr
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
When the basic ingredients of an offence are missing from the complaint itself, permitting such a complaint to continue and compelling the accused to face criminal trial would be totally unjustified and would constitute an abuse of process of law. Therefore, such proceedings are liable to be quashed under Section 482 CrPC. However, when allegations in a complaint, if taken at face value and accepted in their entirety, disclose prima facie commission of an offence involving disputed questions of fact, the High Court should not ordinarily interfere with the Magistrate's summoning order, as the appreciation of evidence and determination of facts is the function of the trial court.
On this section: Workmen's breach of contract. Court found that this section stands repealed by the Workmen's Breach of Contract (Repealing) Act, 1925, and therefore the Magistrate ought not to have summoned the petitioners under this section.
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 492
What have the courts held on Section 492 of the Indian Penal Code?
Suresh& ORS. vs Civil Judge Jd Judicial Magistrate and Anotehr (13 Aug 2010) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: Workmen's breach of contract. Court found that this section stands repealed by the Workmen's Breach of Contract (Repealing) Act, 1925, and therefore the Magistrate ought not to have summoned the petitioners under this section.
How do I find court cases under Section 492 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 492, section 492 IPC, section 492 of the Indian Penal Code. People searching for it also type ipc 492a and 492 ipc punishment. 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 Suresh& ORS. vs Civil Judge Jd Judicial Magistrate and Anotehr (13 Aug 2010).
When did Section 492 of the Indian Penal Code come into force?
Section 492 of the Indian Penal Code, cited as IPC 492, 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.