Termination of imprisonment on payment of proportional part of fine
Section 69 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 deals with termination of imprisonment on payment of proportional part of fine. If, before the expiration of the term of imprisonment fixed in default of payment, such a proportion of the fine be paid or levied that the term of imprisonment suffered in default of payment is not less than proportional to the part of the fine still unpaid, the imprisonment shall terminate. 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 Repealed by section 358 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (45 of 2023) with effect from 1 July 2024, but conduct before that date is still charged, tried and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.
If, before the expiration of the term of imprisonment fixed in default of payment, such a proportion of the fine be paid or levied that the term of imprisonment suffered in default of payment is not less than proportional to the part of the fine still unpaid, the imprisonment shall terminate.
Illustration
A is sentenced to a fine of one hundred rupees and to four months' imprisonment in default of payment. Here, if seventy-five rupees of the fine be paid or levied before the expiration of one month of the imprisonment. A will be discharged as soon as the first month has expired. If seventy-five rupees be paid or levied at the time of the expiration of the first month, or at any later time while A continues in imprisonment. A will be immediately discharged. If fifty rupees of the fine be paid or levied before the expiration of two months of the imprisonment. A will be discharged as soon as the two months are completed. If fifty rupees be paid or levied at the
time of the expiration of those two months, or at any later time while A continues in imprisonment, A will be immediately discharged.
Section 69, 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 75%
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 The repealed enactment still governs what happened while it was in force.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 13
- Andhra Pradesh Children Act s. 81 Compensation for false and frivolous or vexatious information
- Code of Criminal Procedure s. 250 Compensation for accusation without reasonable cause
- Code of Criminal Procedure s. 484 Repeal and savings
- Code of Criminal Procedure Act s. 250 Compensation for accusation without reasonable cause
- Code of Criminal Procedure Act s. 484 Repeal and savings
- Companies Act, 1956 No. 1 of 1956 s. 625
- Code of Criminal Procedure s. 250 Compensation for accusation without reasonable cause
- Crpc 1973 s. 250 Compensation for accusation without reasonable cause
- Crpc 1973 s. 484 Repeal and savings
- Manipur Children Act s. 24
- Telangana Children Act s. 91
- Telangana General Clauses Act s. 19 Recovery of fines
and 1 more
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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Sanjeev Moses Davidson vs State
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Indigence without intervening dishonesty or bad faith in liquidating the liability fastened by the District Consumer Forum or State/National Commission is no ground to incarcerate a person. Before committing a person to prison for non-payment of fines imposed by a consumer forum, the court must conduct an enquiry to determine whether the person has the means to pay but is willfully avoiding discharge of liability. Sentences of imprisonment in default of payment of fines cannot run concurrently with substantive sentences or with each other, as established by consistent judicial precedent spanning nearly a century. The legal fiction created by Section 25 of the Consumer Protection Act applies only for execution purposes and must be read in conjunction with principles of civil imprisonment for debt, which require proof of willful default and financial capacity before imprisonment.
On this section: Provides for termination of imprisonment on payment of proportional part of fine; becomes impossible to apply if multiple sentences of imprisonment in default run concurrently
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 69
What have the courts held on Section 69 of the Indian Penal Code?
Sanjeev Moses Davidson vs State (30 Sep 2003) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: Provides for termination of imprisonment on payment of proportional part of fine; becomes impossible to apply if multiple sentences of imprisonment in default run concurrently.
How do I find court cases under Section 69 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 69, section 69 IPC, section 69 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 Sanjeev Moses Davidson vs State (30 Sep 2003).
What should I read with Section 69 of the Indian Penal Code, and has it changed?
13 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 69 of the Indian Penal Code come into force?
Section 69 of the Indian Penal Code, cited as IPC 69, 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.