Introduction of BNS 47
BNS 47 deals with the concept of abetment in India of offences that occur outside India. This means if someone in India encourages or helps someone to commit a crime in another country, they can be punished as if the crime happened in India. The law aims to ensure that people cannot escape responsibility for crimes just because they happen outside India’s borders.
What is section 47 of BNS ?
BNS Section 47 states that if a person in India supports or encourages the commission of a crime outside of India, they are guilty of abetment. The law treats this support or encouragement as if the crime was committed within India.

BNS Section 47 in Simple Points
Abetment Across Borders
If someone in India encourages another person in a neighboring country to smuggle illegal goods into India, the Indian individual can be prosecuted under this section. The abetment occurs in India, making them liable even if the act happens elsewhere.
Cross-Border Fraud
Imagine a situation where a person in India convinces a friend in another country to set up a fraudulent online business targeting Indian citizens. Even though the fraud takes place outside India, the person in India can be held accountable because they instigated the crime.
Supporting Terrorism
If a person in India provides financial or logistical support to a terrorist group operating in another country, and that group commits an attack, the supporter in India can be charged under this section. The crime’s foreign location does not exempt them from Indian law.
Human Trafficking
An individual in India who arranges for the illegal transportation of people from another country into India for forced labor or exploitation can be charged under BNS Section 2047. Their actions of abetment in India make them culpable.
Corporate Crimes
A business owner in India might instruct an employee in another country to dump toxic waste in a local river to save on disposal costs. If the same act would be illegal in India, the owner can be prosecuted for abetment, despite the act occurring abroad.
Section 47 BNS Overview
BNS Section 47 states that if a person in India helps, encourages, or instigates someone to commit a crime outside India, and if that act would be a crime if done in India, the person abetting the crime is guilty under this section. This ensures that individuals cannot escape liability by assisting in crimes that take place beyond India’s borders.
Abetment Defined:
- Abetment means helping, encouraging, or supporting someone to commit a crime.
- Example: A person in India sends money to someone in another country to carry out a robbery. This act of sending money is considered abetment.
Jurisdiction:
- The section applies to anyone in India, even if the crime takes place in another country.
- Example: If someone in India asks a person in another country to commit fraud, it is treated as a crime under Indian law.
Equal Treatment:
- The crime is treated as if it happened in India, with the same punishment.
- Example: If a person in India encourages a murder abroad, they face the same punishment as they would if the murder occurred in India.
Foreign Nationals:
- It applies to both Indian citizens and foreign nationals in India.
- Example: A foreigner living in India asks someone in their home country to commit a crime. They can be punished under Indian law.
International Crimes:
- The section covers crimes that are recognized internationally, like terrorism.
- Example: If someone in India funds a terrorist act in another country, they are held accountable under this law.
Communication Channels:
- Abetment can occur through any form of communication, including emails or phone calls.
- Example: Sending an email from India to another country instructing someone to commit a crime is abetment.
Intent Matters:
- The person must have intended for the crime to happen. Mere discussion is not enough.
- Example: Discussing a crime without intending for it to happen is not abetment. But planning and supporting the crime is.
Conspiracy:
- If the abetment is part of a larger conspiracy, all involved parties in India can be punished.
- Example: A group of people in India plan a crime that is to be executed in another country. All can be charged under this section.
Prevention of Escape:
- The law ensures that criminals cannot escape punishment by simply committing the crime outside India.
- Example: Someone planning a crime from India, thinking they will avoid punishment because the crime happens abroad, is still liable.
Legal Consequences:
- Legal consequences include arrest, trial, and punishment in India, even for crimes committed abroad.
- Example: A person in India is arrested for abetting a theft in another country and is tried in an Indian court.
Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Section 47
Definition | Offence | Punishment | Bailable |
---|---|---|---|
Helping or encouraging someone in another country to commit a crime | Abetment of an offence outside India | Same as if the crime occurred in India | Depends on the offence abetted |
BNS Section 47 FAQs
Does BNS Section 47 apply if the crime is legal in the foreign country?
Yes, if the act would be illegal if committed in India, the person in India who abets the act can still be prosecuted under this section.
Can someone be punished in India for a crime that never actually happened?
Yes, if the person in India abetted the crime, they can be charged even if the crime is attempted or planned but not fully carried out.
Is it necessary for the abetted crime to be illegal in the other country?
No, it is treated as an offence under Indian law regardless of the laws in the other country.
Can someone be charged under this section for encouraging a crime unintentionally?
No, there must be an intention to support or encourage the crime for it to be considered abetment.
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