Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023
BNS Section 337
Forgery of record of Court or of public register, etc
In one line
BNS Section 337 deals with forgery of record of court or of public register, etc and replaces IPC 466.
Punishment, bail and court
| Section | Offence | Punishment | Cognizable | Bailable | Triable by |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 337 | Forgery of a record of a Court or of a Registrar of Births, etc., kept by a public servant. | Imprisonment for 7 years and fine | Non-cognizable. | Non-bailable. | Magistrate of the first class. |
Source: First Schedule to the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023. The punishment column is the Schedule’s summary; the section text below is what prescribes the punishment. Classification decides procedure (arrest, bail as of right, which court), not the result of any particular case.
Bare act text — BNS 337
337. Forgery of record of Court or of public register, etc.
Whoever forges a document or an electronic record, purporting to be a record or proceeding of or in a Court or an identity document issued by Government including voter identity card or Aadhaar Card, or a register of birth, marriage or burial, or a register kept by a public servant as such, or a certificate or document purporting to be made by a public servant in his official capacity, or an authority to institute or defend a suit, or to take any proceedings therein, or to confess judgment, or a power of attorney, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, and shall also be liable to fine. Explanation.—For the purposes of this section, “register” includes any list, data or record of any entries maintained in the electronic form as defined in clause (r) of sub-section
(1) of section 2 of the Information Technology Act, 2000 (21 of 2000).
What changed from the IPC
- IPC 466 → BNS 337: "Court or an identity document issued by the government, including a voter identity card or Aadhaar card," is added, and "baptism" is excluded.
Frequently asked
What was BNS Section 337 in the IPC?
BNS Section 337 (Forgery of record of Court or of public register, etc) replaces Section 466 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860. IPC 466 is now BNS 337.
What is the punishment under BNS 337?
Forgery of a record of a Court or of a Registrar of Births, etc., kept by a public servant – punishable with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, and shall also be liable to fine. Under the First Schedule to the BNSS, 2023 it is non-cognizable and non-bailable, triable by magistrate of the first class.
Is BNS 337 bailable?
Non-bailable: BNS 337. Bail in a non-bailable offence is at the court's discretion; the classification decides procedure, not the outcome of a particular bail application.
Still citing the IPC? Convert any old section in seconds, or keep the whole case — dates, clients and sections — in one diary.
Nearby BNS sections
- BNS 332 — House-trespass in order to commit offence
- BNS 333 — House-trespass after preparation for hurt, assault or wrongful restraint
- BNS 334 — Dishonestly breaking open receptacle containing property
- BNS 335 — Making a false document
- BNS 336 — Forgery
- BNS 338 — Forgery of valuable security, will, etc
- BNS 339 — Having possession of document described in section 337 or section 338, knowing it to be forged and intending to use it as genuine
- BNS 340 — Forged document or electronic record and using it as genuine
- BNS 341 — Making or possessing counterfeit seal, etc., with intent to commit forgery punishable under section 338
- BNS 342 — Counterfeiting device or mark used for authenticating documents described in section 338, or possessing counterfeit marked material