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Indian Penal Code, 1860 · Chapter IV: General Exceptions · Of the Right of Private Defence

Section 106: Right of private defence against deadly assault when there is risk of harm to inno cent person

The Indian Penal Code, 1860 was repealed and replaced by the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 from 1 July 2024. It still applies to offences and proceedings from before that date.

Now in the BNS section 44 (Right of private defence against deadly assault when there is risk of harm to innocent person)

In plain words

If, while defending against an assault that reasonably causes fear of death, the defender cannot effectively defend without risk of harm to an innocent person, the right of private defence extends to running that risk.

A simplified explanation, prepared with AI assistance from the official text below and checked automatically against it for numbers and cross-references. The official text is the law and prevails over this summary. Not legal advice.

Official text

If in the exercise of the right of private defence against an assault which reasonably causes the apprehension of death, the defender be so situated that he cannot effectually exercise that right without risk of harm to an innocent person, his right of private defence extends to the running of that risk.

Corresponding sections were matched by comparing the wording of both official texts, and for the IPC and BNS, also against a published correspondence table. Wording, punishments and structure often changed, so read both sections before relying on the match.

Source: India Code (Legislative Department), the text of the Act as it stood before its repeal. Words in square brackets [ ] were inserted or substituted by later amending Acts, and *** marks words omitted by an amendment. The amendment footnotes are not reproduced here.

Supreme Court judgments citing the section 106