Indian criminal law | IPC and BNS

Section 323 IPC: Punishment for Voluntarily Causing Hurt

Understand the punishment for voluntarily causing hurt under Section 323 of the Indian Penal Code, its ingredients, the Section 334 exception, and the corresponding provision under Section 115 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.

Original statutory text: Section 323 IPC

Meaning and essential ingredients

Hurt under Section 319 IPC means causing bodily pain, disease or infirmity to a person. Voluntarily causing hurt under Section 321 IPC requires an act done with the intention of causing hurt, or knowledge that hurt is likely, which actually causes hurt.

• Conduct: An act by the accused must be proved.
• Mental element: The accused intended to cause hurt or knew hurt was likely.
• Result: Bodily pain, disease or infirmity was actually caused.
• Connection: The hurt must be attributable to the act.
• Statutory qualification: Section 323 expressly excludes the case provided by IPC Section 334.

Punishment under Section 323 IPC

For voluntarily causing hurt, the court may impose imprisonment of either description for up to one year, or a fine up to Rs. 1,000, or both. This is the maximum prescribed by the IPC section, not a mandatory sentence for every case.

What is the Section 334 IPC exception?

Section 334 IPC separately addresses voluntarily causing hurt on grave and sudden provocation, subject to its own statutory conditions. Section 323 begins with an express exception for cases falling within Section 334. Whether provocation legally qualifies depends on the evidence and the governing provision; provocation is not an automatic defence to every allegation of hurt.

Corresponding BNS provision: Section 115

Section 115(1) BNS defines voluntarily causing hurt, while Section 115(2) BNS provides its general punishment: imprisonment of either description for up to one year, or a fine up to Rs. 10,000, or both. The BNS also contains a separate provision addressing hurt on grave and sudden provocation in Section 122(1); the applicable statutory language must be assessed on the facts.

Hurt, grievous hurt and dangerous means

Simple hurt differs from voluntarily causing grievous hurt under Section 322 IPC, which involves one of the legally specified kinds of grievous injury. Section 325 IPC prescribed the general punishment for grievous hurt. Section 324 IPC addressed voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons or means. These offences require consideration of their own elements, not merely the fact that an injury occurred.

Evidence and practical application

Relevant evidence may include medical records, injury reports, witness statements, contemporaneous complaints, and the circumstances showing intention or knowledge. Medical evidence can support a claim of hurt, but the absence of a visible wound does not necessarily exclude bodily pain. Conversely, proof of an injury alone does not establish every ingredient of a criminal offence.

Official legislation and further reading

• India Code - official repository of Central Acts (search for the Indian Penal Code, 1860, Section 323).
• Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 - official India Code Act text (Sections 114, 115, 117 and 122).
• Indian Penal Code - sections and punishments.

Frequently asked questions

Legal note: This article is general legal information. Charges, procedural classification, available defences and applicable law depend on the date and circumstances of the alleged act.