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Section68
The Indian Penal Code, 1860

Imprisonment to terminate on payment of fine

Repealed From 01 Jan 1862 Act 45 of 1860 As on 18 Oct 2026

Act 45 of 1860 Ministry Home Affairs Enacted 06 Oct 1860 In force 01 Jan 1862 Cited by 10 provisions

This provision is repealed. Repealed by section 358 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (45 of 2023) with effect from 1 July 2024.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 68 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 deals with imprisonment to terminate on payment of fine. The imprisonment which is imposed in default of payment of a fine shall terminate whenever that fine is either paid or levied by process of law. 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 Repealed by section 358 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (45 of 2023) with effect from 1 July 2024, but conduct before that date is still charged, tried and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.

The imprisonment which is imposed in default of payment of a fine shall terminate whenever that fine is either paid or levied by process of law.

Section 68, The Indian Penal Code, 1860 (Act 45 of 1860).

Now in the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita

BNS 8 Amount of fine, liability in default of payment of fine, etc Close, with changes 79%

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 The repealed enactment still governs what happened while it was in force.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 10

  1. Andhra Pradesh Children Act s. 81 Compensation for false and frivolous or vexatious information
  2. Code of Criminal Procedure s. 250 Compensation for accusation without reasonable cause
  3. Code of Criminal Procedure Act s. 250 Compensation for accusation without reasonable cause
  4. Companies Act, 1956 No. 1 of 1956 s. 625
  5. Code of Criminal Procedure s. 250 Compensation for accusation without reasonable cause
  6. Crpc 1973 s. 250 Compensation for accusation without reasonable cause
  7. Manipur Children Act s. 24
  8. Telangana Children Act s. 91
  9. Telangana General Clauses Act s. 19 Recovery of fines
  10. Uttar Pradesh Children Act s. 22

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. Kumaran vs State of Kerala

    Supreme Court of India 05 May 2017 Binding (SC) Reportable

    Court's Decision & Legal Precedent

    When compensation is ordered under Section 357(3) of the Criminal Procedure Code, the deeming fiction contained in Section 431 Cr.P.C. extends the application of Section 421(1) and Section 70 IPC to such compensation. Consequently, compensation remains recoverable even after the accused has undergone the default imprisonment sentence prescribed for non-payment, without the necessity for recording special reasons in writing. This is because the proviso to Section 421(1), as amended following the 41st Law Commission Report, creates a disjunctive category for compensation orders that operates independently of the requirement for special reasons.

    On this section: Provides that default imprisonment terminates when fine is paid or levied by process of law

    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.

Questions about Section 68

What have the courts held on Section 68 of the Indian Penal Code?

Kumaran vs State of Kerala (05 May 2017) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: Provides that default imprisonment terminates when fine is paid or levied by process of law.

How do I find court cases under Section 68 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 68, section 68 IPC, section 68 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 Kumaran vs State of Kerala (05 May 2017).

What should I read with Section 68 of the Indian Penal Code, and has it changed?

10 other provisions in this corpus refer back to it. For anything done on or after 1 July 2024 the provision to read is BNS 8 (Amount of fine, liability in default of payment of fine, etc), which replaced it; conduct before that date is still charged, tried and appealed under this section.

When did Section 68 of the Indian Penal Code come into force?

Section 68 of the Indian Penal Code, cited as IPC 68, 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

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.