Things done in private defence
Section 96 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 deals with things done in private defence. Nothing is an offence which is done in the exercise of the right of private defence. 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 Repealed by section 358 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (45 of 2023) with effect from 1 July 2024, but conduct before that date is still charged, tried and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.
Nothing is an offence which is done in the exercise of the right of private defence.
Section 96, The Indian Penal Code, 1860 (Act 45 of 1860).
Now in the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita
BNS 34 Things done in private defence 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 The repealed enactment still governs what happened while it was in force.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.
Cross-references
Extracted from the operative text of the enactments themselves. Every destination below exists in our corpus.
Referred to by 1
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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Darshan Singh v. State of Punjab
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Judgment of Main Case order-5.pdf 2010-01-15 (not same-date order-6 ROP). Bhandari/Ganguly, Crl A 1057/2002. Restores trial-court acquittal on private defence: ss.96–100 IPC. The right commences as soon as a reasonable apprehension of death or grievous hurt arises; the defender is not expected to modulate the defence step by step; burden is preponderance of probabilities, not beyond reasonable doubt. A licensed-gun response to a gandasa attack in a family land dispute was held justified. Map the core body-defence cluster 96/97/99/100 (not every 96–106 number).
On this section: s.96: nothing is an offence which is done in the exercise of the right of private defence — the starting clause of the 96–100 cluster.
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Gopal vs State of Rajasthan
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
The right of private defence is available only so long as there is reasonable apprehension of death or grievous hurt from the person against whom the defence is exercised. Once the threat ceases, such as when the other party flees the scene, the right of private defence also ceases. Chasing and beating a fleeing person constitutes an excess of the right of private defence and renders the accused liable for causing death or injury to that fleeing person. The burden on an accused to establish the plea of self-defence is to show preponderance of probabilities in favour of the plea, not proof beyond reasonable doubt. This burden can be discharged by reference to circumstances from the prosecution evidence itself.
On this section: Cited to establish the foundational principle that nothing is an offence which is done in exercise of right of private defence
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Surender Singh vs State (NCT Of Delhi)
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
When an accused pleads self-defence under Section 105 of the Indian Evidence Act, the burden of proof lies on the accused to establish the plea by credible evidence. The burden, though not as onerous as beyond reasonable doubt, requires some degree of reasonable satisfaction. In the absence of credible evidence supporting the plea of self-defence, the court shall presume the absence of such circumstances. Similarly, the plea of grave and sudden provocation under Exception 1 to Section 300 IPC requires that the provocation be such as would temporarily deprive a reasonable person of self-control. The test is whether a reasonable man belonging to the same class of society as the accused, placed in the situation in which the accused was placed, would be so provoked as to lose self-control. The fatal blow should be clearly traced to the influence of passion arising from provocation and not after passion had cooled down. In the present case, the overwhelming eyewitness testimony of four police personnel, corroborated by forensic evidence, establishes that the appellant deliberately and intentionally killed the deceased out of jealousy and motive, not in self-defence or under grave provocation. Therefore, the conviction for murder under Section 302 IPC is upheld.
On this section: Right of private defence - the court analyzed the appellant's plea of self-defence under these sections
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Dharmatma Singh vs Harminder Singh
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
The High Court cannot exercise its inherent power under Section 482 of the Criminal Procedure Code to quash criminal proceedings at an interlocutory stage when the Magistrate has not yet applied judicial mind to the police reports filed under Section 173 and Section 190 of the Criminal Procedure Code. The Magistrate has the statutory duty and judicial discretion to independently evaluate all police reports (both initial and further investigation reports) and determine whether to take cognizance of offences, regardless of police recommendations. The High Court's inherent jurisdiction under Section 482 cannot be exercised to circumvent or short-circuit the Magistrate's statutory role. Exercise of Section 482 powers before a Magistrate applies judicial mind to the merits of the case would violate the procedural hierarchy and legislative scheme of the Criminal Procedure Code.
On this section: The core issue of the case - whether Harminder Singh's injuries to the appellant's group constituted valid acts of self-defence. The Superintendent of Police's further investigation report concluded these sections applied to Harminder Singh's actions.
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Shaukat vs State of Uttaranchal
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
When multiple evidentiary factors establish premeditation (prior threat, weapon-carrying, deliberate follow-up to confrontation site, specific instruction to kill, and immediate compliance), combined with the infliction of injuries on vital organs with sufficient force to cause immediate death, the act constitutes murder under Section 302 IPC and cannot be reduced to culpable homicide under Section 304 Part-I IPC merely because the quarrel occurred at the spot. Exception 4 to Section 300 IPC (sudden fight without premeditation) does not apply when the temporal and contextual evidence reveals deliberate planning and execution. Similarly, when an appellant inflicts multiple grievous injuries (including bone-deep wounds with fractures) on a person attempting to prevent harm to a victim, this constitutes attempt to commit murder under Section 307 IPC rather than mere attempt to cause hurt under Section 308 IPC.
On this section: The appellant claimed right of self-defense based on injuries sustained by him and his father. The Court rejected this plea, finding medical evidence showed the injuries were superficial (dash with tree) and self-inflicted, with no evidence of assault by the deceased or injured persons on the appellant or his father.
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Hanumantappa Bhimappa Dalavai vs State of Karnataka
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
The right of private defence cannot be claimed by a person who deliberately retrieves a weapon from his premises and then assaults the visitors; such conduct bears the stamp of design to kill and falls outside the purview of private defence as defined in Sections 96-106 of the Indian Penal Code. The absence of injury on the accused persons, combined with credible eye-witness testimony of the victims, the deliberate fetching of a weapon, and the coordinated nature of the assault, establishes that the appellants were aggressors, not defenders, and the burden on the accused to establish self-defence by preponderance of probabilities was not discharged. Consequently, the conviction for murder under Section 302 IPC and grievous hurt under Section 326 IPC is upheld.
On this section: Provides that nothing is an offence which is done in the exercise of the right of private defence; cited to analyse the defence plea raised by the appellants.
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State of U. P vs Gajey Singh
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
When injuries sustained by the accused persons during an alleged criminal incident are not explained by the prosecution witnesses, and those injuries are serious and substantial rather than superficial or minor, the non-explanation constitutes a significant circumstance that renders the prosecution version doubtful and may justify a finding that the accused legitimately exercised the right of private defence. The accused need only show that their defence plea was probable and that there was reasonable apprehension of death or grievous hurt based on the nature and manner of assault, the weapons involved, and the surrounding circumstances. The burden does not rest on the accused to prove their defence case to the hilt, but rather on the prosecution to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt without suppressing the true genesis and origin of the occurrence.
On this section: Provides that nothing is an offence which is done in the exercise of the right of private defence; establishes fundamental principle that private defence is a complete defence to criminal charges
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Ravishwar Manjhi vs State of Jharkhand
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
When injuries are found on the person of the accused in a case where a plea of private defense is raised, the prosecution must explain these injuries. If the prosecution fails to adequately explain the injuries on the accused and the circumstances suggest a probable case of self-defense, the accused is entitled to acquittal. The right of private defense need not be specifically pleaded; courts may act upon such conclusion based on materials placed on record by the prosecution itself. In cases involving armed conflict where both parties sustained injuries, the court must examine whether the accused were aggressors or acted in self-defense, considering the genesis of the occurrence and the nature of injuries. Procedural defects in investigation, including failure to produce crucial evidence like station diary and non-examination of Investigating Officer, combined with temporal inconsistencies and delayed witness statements, can vitiate the prosecution case and entitle the accused to acquittal.
On this section: Establishes that nothing is an offence if done in exercise of the right of private defense
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Ravishwar Manjhi vs State of Jharkhand
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
When in a criminal case involving violent confrontation both parties are armed with deadly weapons and sustain injuries, uniform murder convictions under Section 302 IPC cannot be sustained against all accused. If material on record creates reasonable probability that accused exercised right of private defence against apprehended death or grievous hurt, the accused is entitled to acquittal even without express plea, provided the right was not exercised after danger ceased. The prosecution must prove initial aggression and must explain injuries on accused persons when self-defence is a probable scenario. Courts must evaluate all circumstances pragmatically without hyper-technical approach and cannot reject defence merely because accused failed to prove it, but must assess whether it was probable given the materials on record.
On this section: Nothing is an offence if done in exercise of right of private defence
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Raghbir Singh vs State of Haryana
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
The right of private defence is a defensive right available only when circumstances clearly justify it and cannot be used as pretext for vindictive or aggressive purposes. While a person facing reasonable apprehension of threat cannot be expected to modulate defence step-by-step with arithmetical exactitude in the heat of moment, and situations must be pragmatically viewed without hyper-technical scrutiny, an accused must establish on preponderance of probabilities that the assault was necessity for warding off attack or forestalling reasonable apprehension. When an accused fails to fully establish self-defence plea but the facts show assault occurred in course of sudden quarrel without premeditation using non-lethal weapons, Exception 4 to Section 300 IPC applies, reducing offense from murder to culpable homicide not amounting to murder (Section 304 IPC), with custodial sentence appropriately reflecting the seriousness of causing death by dangerous act.
On this section: Establishes that nothing is an offence done in exercise of right of private defence; the Section does not define the right but indicates its existence and applicability.
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Ram Pyare Mishra vs Prem Shanker
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Even where the right of private defence is exercised, such right is limited and must not be exceeded. If an accused causes death by force grossly disproportionate to the threat faced and beyond what was necessary to ward off an immediate apprehension of death or grievous hurt, the excess becomes unlawful and constitutes culpable homicide, not murder. The burden of establishing the plea of self-defence lies on the accused and must be discharged by preponderance of probabilities. However, the court must pragmatically view actions taken in moments of peril and excitement, considering the subjective apprehension of the accused, not with hyper-technical scrutiny. When credible eyewitness evidence conclusively establishes the assault and death, minor and superficial injuries on the accused cannot form the sole basis for accepting a self-defence plea lacking material support in the evidence.
On this section: Establishes that nothing is an offence when done in exercise of right of private defence. Cited to establish the foundational principle that the right exists and must be evaluated based on circumstances.
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Dinesh Singh vs State of U. P
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Where an accused claims the right of private defence, he must establish on the basis of preponderance of probabilities that there existed reasonable apprehension of death or grievous hurt at the time of the alleged defensive action. The right of private defence is a legitimate right available only when circumstances clearly justify it, requiring careful examination of the entire incident in its proper setting. Where no person on the prosecution side is shown to be armed with any weapon, there cannot be any reasonable apprehension of death or grievous hurt, and therefore the right cannot extend to causing death. The burden rests on the accused to establish this right, and absent such establishment, an act causing death constitutes culpable homicide.
On this section: Nothing is an offence which is done in the exercise of the right of private defence; defines scope and availability of right
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Bable @ Gurdeep Singh vs State of Chattisgarh Tr. P. S. O. P. Kursipur
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Where a case against an accused is established by reliable, cogent, and credible evidence including dying declaration corroborated by eyewitness accounts, medical evidence, and the accused's own admission of presence at the crime scene and involvement in a fight with the deceased, the accused's explanation claiming self-defence is rejected if it is factually contradictory, internally inconsistent, and runs counter to the nature and pattern of injuries. The acquittal of co-accused does not provide benefit to the remaining accused when independent evidence establishes guilt of the remaining accused beyond reasonable doubt.
On this section: Right to private defence - appellant's claim to have acted in self-defence analyzed and rejected due to implausible nature of explanation
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Pramod Tiwari vs The State of Madhya Pradesh
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
When a person uses force to prevent damage to his property from cattle trespass on jointly-owned land, after making an oral objection which is refused, such use of force is protected under the right of private defence of property as provided in Sections 96 and 104 of the Indian Penal Code, and does not constitute an offence under Section 325 IPC. The right of private defence extends to causing any harm other than death if used for averting the commission of offence of theft, mischief or criminal trespass, and the necessity for such force is established when the property owner has first attempted peaceful resolution through oral objection.
On this section: Right of private defence; court held that nothing is an offence which is done in exercise of the right of private defence, and applied this to justify the applicant's actions in protecting his property
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Mohan Lal vs State
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
When a person is faced with criminal trespass on his property and reacts to protect his property and person, he has the right of private defence available to him. However, this right is circumscribed by law and cannot extend to causing death or grievous hurt unless there is reasonable apprehension that death or grievous hurt would otherwise be the consequence. If the person uses excessive force and causes death when the aggressor is not armed with a deadly weapon and there is no reasonable apprehension of death or grievous hurt, the act falls under Exception II of Section 300 IPC and is punishable under Section 304 Part-II IPC (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and not under Section 302 IPC (murder). The burden is on the accused to show that he had a right of private defence which extended to causing of death, and the court must examine all surrounding circumstances and view the entire incident in its proper setting to determine whether the right of private defence was exceeded.
On this section: Provides that nothing is an offence which is done in exercise of the right of private defence. The court held that this section does not define the expression 'right of private defence' but merely indicates that nothing is an offence done in exercise of such right. Whether a person acted in exercise of this right is a question of fact to be determined on the facts and circumstances of each case.
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Arjun vs State of Maharashtra
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
When an act of violence resulting in death is committed in heat of passion upon a sudden quarrel, without premeditation, without any undue advantage taken, and in the course of a mutual fight where both parties sustained injuries, the conviction under Section 302 IPC (murder) should be altered to Section 304 Part 1 IPC (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), even though the accused was armed with a lethal weapon and the victim was unarmed, provided the overall circumstances do not show deliberate calculation or predetermined violence.
On this section: Right of private defense against acts which are offenses against body or property
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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… exceeded the power given to him by law in order to defend himself but we are of the view that the exercise of the right was in good faith, in his own defence and without premeditation… …………" 52. In Rajesh Kumar vs. Dharamvir and others<sup>26</sup> , the Supreme Court held that : " 20. Section 96 of the Indian Penal Code provides that nothing is an offence which is done in the exercise of the right of private defence and the fascicle of Sections 97 to 106 thereof lays down the extent and limitation of such right. From a plain reading of the above sections it is manifest that such a right can be exercised …
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… The manner of assault and the weapon so used are indicative of the fact that at the time of exercising of right of private defence, the appellants have not scaled beyond whatever they had in terms of Section 96 of the Indian Penal Code and on account thereof, they would not have been convicted. Had there been proper consideration of the plea of the appellant inconsonance with the materials available on the record, no case even of culpable homicide not amount to murder is made out. So submitted that the conviction and …
Questions about Section 96
What have the courts held on Section 96 of the Indian Penal Code?
Darshan Singh v. State of Punjab (15 Jan 2010) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: s.96: nothing is an offence which is done in the exercise of the right of private defence — the starting clause of the 96–100 cluster. Another 15 judgments on this section are set out below, 14 of them from the Supreme Court. They run from 2008 to 2023.
How do I find court cases under Section 96 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 96, section 96 IPC, section 96 of the Indian Penal Code. People searching for it also type ipc 96 to 106 in hindi. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 16 reported judgments on this section are set out on this page, beginning with Darshan Singh v. State of Punjab (15 Jan 2010).
What should I read with Section 96 of the Indian Penal Code, and has it changed?
1 other provision in this corpus refers back to it. For anything done on or after 1 July 2024 the provision to read is BNS 34 (Things done in private defence), which replaced it; conduct before that date is still charged, tried and appealed under this section.
When did Section 96 of the Indian Penal Code come into force?
Section 96 of the Indian Penal Code, commonly called self defence or private defence, and cited as IPC 96, 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.