Criminal procedure | Updated 18 October 2026

Section 220 CrPC: Trial for More Than One Offence | Section 243 BNSS

Where several offences arise from a connected series of acts, the criminal court may try them together rather than hold separate trials. Section 220 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (CrPC) set out this rule and its related situations. Section 243 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS) is the corresponding current provision.

Current law: The BNSS came into force on 1 July 2024. Section 243 BNSS deals with trial for more than one offence. Section 531 BNSS contains repeal and savings rules, so the CrPC can remain relevant to certain proceedings pending at commencement. The original CrPC illustrations below are historical illustrations, not statements that repealed IPC offences necessarily remain prosecutable for conduct after 1 July 2024.

Meaning of trial for more than one offence

A charge is the formal accusation specifying an alleged offence. A joint trial permits two or more charges to be heard in one criminal proceeding where the law authorises it. The expression same transaction refers to a connected course of conduct assessed from the circumstances, such as proximity of time and place, continuity of action, and common purpose; no single factor is conclusive.

Section 220 CrPC: Full substantive provision

The following preserves the five subsections of Section 220 CrPC from the original article, including its reference to the former Indian Penal Code.

(1) If, in one series of acts so connected together as to form the same transaction, more offences than one are committed by the same person, he may be charged with, and tried at one trial for, every such offence.

(2) When a person charged with one or more offences of criminal breach of trust or dishonest misappropriation of property as provided in sub-section (2) of section 212 or in sub-section (1) of section 219, is accused of committing, for the purpose of facilitating or concealing the commission of that offence or those offences, one or more offences of falsification of accounts, he may be charged with, and tried at one trial for, every such offence.

(3) If the acts alleged constitute an offence falling within two or more separate definitions of any law in force for the time being by which offences are defined or punished, the person accused of them may be charged with, and tried at one trial for, each of such offences.

(4) If several acts, of which one or more than one would by itself or themselves constitute an offence, constitute when combined a different offence, the person accused of them may be charged with, and tried at one trial for the offence constituted by such acts when combined, and for any offence constituted by any one, or more, of such acts.

(5) Nothing contained in this section shall affect section 71 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860).

Section 243 BNSS: Corresponding current provision

Section 243 BNSS continues the statutory framework allowing more than one offence to be tried together in defined circumstances. In applying the BNSS, references to the substantive criminal law must be read with the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS), other applicable penal statutes, and the transitional provisions relevant to the date of the alleged offence. Check the enacted text for the precise cross-references and wording.

When can offences be tried together?

1. Offences forming the same transaction

Under subsection (1), offences committed by the same person in one connected series of acts may be charged and tried at one trial. The court considers the factual connection between acts, not simply whether the same accused is involved.

2. Breach of trust or misappropriation with falsification of accounts

Subsection (2) permits a combined trial when alleged falsification of accounts was committed to facilitate or conceal the specified criminal breach of trust or dishonest misappropriation offences.

3. Acts falling under multiple offence definitions

Subsection (3) covers conduct that may satisfy more than one separate statutory definition. The accused may face charges for the relevant offences in one trial, subject to applicable safeguards against impermissible multiple punishment.

4. Individual acts and a combined offence

Subsection (4) permits charges for individual criminal acts and the different offence constituted when those acts are combined. Subsection (5) preserved the application of Section 71 IPC, which limited punishment in specified overlapping-offence situations; the corresponding current substantive-law restrictions must be considered for offences governed by the BNS.

Original statutory illustrations to Section 220 CrPC

The original article included illustrations (a) to (m). They are retained here to explain the historical statutory rule. Illustrations involving adultery under former IPC Section 497 are historical only: that offence was struck down by the Supreme Court in 2018 and must not be treated as a currently punishable offence.

Illustrations to subsection (1)

a. A rescues B, a person in lawful custody, and in so doing causes grievous hurt to C, a constable in whose custody B was. A may be charged with, and convicted of, offences under sections 225 and 333 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860).

b. A commits house-breaking by day with intent to commit adultery, and commits, in the house so entered, adultery with B's wife. A may be separately charged with, and convicted of, offences under sections 454 and 497 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860).

c. A entices B, the wife of C, away from C, with intent to commit adultery with B, and then commits adultery with her. A may be separately charged with, and convicted of, offences under sections 498 and 497 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860).

d. A has in his possession several seals, knowing them to be counterfeit and intending to use them for the purpose of committing several forgeries punishable under section 466 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860). A may be separately charged with, and convicted of, the possession of each seal under section 473 of the Indian Penal Code.

e. With intent to cause injury to B, A institutes a criminal proceeding against him, knowing that there is no just or lawful ground for such proceeding, and also falsely accuses B of having committed an offence, knowing that there is no just or lawful ground for such charge. A may be separately charged with, and convicted of, two offences under section 211 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860).

f. A, with intent to cause injury to B, falsely accuses him of having committed an offence, knowing that there is no just or lawful ground for such charge. On the trial, A gives false evidence against B, intending thereby to cause B to be convicted of a capital offence. A may be separately charged with, and convicted of, offences under sections 211 and 194 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860).

g. A, with six others, commits the offences of rioting, grievous hurt and assaulting a public servant endeavouring in the discharge of his duty as such to suppress the riot. A may be separately charged with, and convicted of, offences under sections 147, 325 and 152 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860).

h. A threatens B, C and D at the same time with injury to their persons with intent to cause alarm to them. A may be separately charged with, and convicted of, each of the three offences under section 506 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860).

The separate charges referred to in illustrations (a) to (h) may be tried at the same time.

Illustrations to subsection (3)

i. A wrongfully strikes B with a cane. A may be separately charged with, and convicted of, offences under sections 352 and 323 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860).

j. Several stolen sacks of corn are made over to A and B, who knew they are stolen property, for the purpose of concealing them. A and B thereupon voluntarily assist each other to conceal the sacks at the bottom of a grain-pit. A and B may be separately charged with, and convicted of, offences under sections 411 and 414 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860).

k. A exposes her child with the knowledge that she is thereby likely to cause its death. The child dies in consequence of such exposure. A may be separately charged with, and convicted of, offences under sections 317 and 304 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860).

l. A dishonestly uses a forged document as genuine evidence, in order to convict B, a public servant, of an offence under section 167 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860). A may be separately charged with, and convicted of, offences under sections 471 (read with section 466) and 196 of that Code.

Illustration to subsection (4)

m. A commits robbery on B, and in doing so voluntarily causes hurt to him. A may be separately charged with, and convicted of, offences under sections 323, 392 and 394 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860).

How this rule relates to other charge provisions

Section 218 CrPC (Section 241 BNSS) states the general rule of separate charges and separate trials, subject to exceptions.
Section 219 CrPC (Section 242 BNSS) addresses offences of the same kind committed within twelve months; the current BNSS provision must be consulted for its applicable numerical limit.
Section 216 CrPC (Section 239 BNSS) addresses alteration or addition of charges before judgment.
Section 217 CrPC (Section 240 BNSS) addresses recalling witnesses when charges are altered.

Frequently asked questions

Can different offences be tried in one criminal trial?

Yes, when the relevant CrPC or BNSS provisions permit joint trial, including where the offences form part of the same transaction.

Does committing several offences automatically make them one transaction?

No. The court assesses the factual connection among the acts and the statutory requirements.

Does a joint trial mean a single offence or a single punishment?

No. Charges and findings may remain distinct. Rules governing conviction, sentencing, and overlapping punishment apply independently.

Which BNSS provision corresponds to Section 220 CrPC?

Section 243 BNSS, titled Trial for more than one offence.

Official legal references

Verify the statutory text and amendments through India Code, including the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023. For commencement notifications consult the Ministry of Home Affairs.

This article is general legal information. The applicable procedure depends on the date of the alleged offence, commencement and savings provisions, and the procedural history of the case.