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Predicted Questions with Model Answers
Q1 (5 marks — 50 words): What is the Bhartiya Nyay Sanhita 2023? How is it different from the IPC 1860?
Model Answer:
The Bhartiya Nyay Sanhita 2023 (BNS) replaced the Indian Penal Code 1860 with effect from 1 July 2024 — ending 164 years of colonial criminal law. Key differences: BNS has 358 sections (IPC had 511); added 21 new offences including organised crime (S.111), terrorism (S.113), and hit-and-run (S.106(2)); introduced community service as a new punishment; removed the colonial "sedition" label (replaced by S.152); and renumbered all major offences.
Q2 (5 marks — 50 words): What is 'organised crime' under BNS Section 111? What is its punishment?
Model Answer:
BNS Section 111 defines organised crime as any continuing unlawful activity by an organised crime syndicate (gang of two or more persons) using force, violence, coercion, or intimidation for monetary gain or advantage. This was a major gap in IPC — no national organised crime provision existed before. Punishments: (1) Without death — RI 5–10 years + fine; (2) Causing grievous hurt — RI 7–14 years + fine; (3) Resulting in death — death or RI for life + fine.
Q3 (5 marks — 50 words): How does BNS 2023 treat the offence of sedition differently from IPC Section 124A?
Model Answer:
IPC Section 124A (sedition) — enacted by British colonisers in 1870 — punished "exciting disaffection" against the Government by words or signs, maximum imprisonment for life. BNS Section 152 replaces it without using the word "sedition"; it punishes acts that "endanger sovereignty, unity and integrity of India" or encourage separatist activities, with RI up to life or 7 years. Critics note BNS S.152 is potentially broader than IPC 124A — renaming rather than genuine abolition.
Q4 (5 marks — 50 words): What is community service as a punishment under BNS 2023? For which offences is it applicable?
Model Answer:
Community service — introduced for the first time in Indian criminal law through BNS Sections 4 and 23 — allows courts to sentence offenders to perform unpaid work for the community instead of (or alongside) short imprisonment for minor offences. Applicable to: petty theft (first offence), minor public nuisance, defamation (Section 356), public intoxication (Section 355), and attempt to commit suicide (Section 226). Objective: reduce prison overcrowding and promote rehabilitation over retribution for minor crimes.
Q5 (5 marks — 50 words): Explain the hit-and-run provision under BNS Section 106.
Model Answer:
BNS Section 106 has two parts: (1) S.106(1): Causing death by rash or negligent driving — imprisonment up to 5 years + fine (equivalent to old IPC S.304A). (2) S.106(2): New provision — causing death by negligent driving AND fleeing the accident scene without reporting to police or magistrate — imprisonment up to 10 years + fine. This provision created nationwide truck-driver protests in January 2024, after which the Government clarified implementation guidelines before notifying the section.
Q6 (5 marks — 50 words): What are the punishment types available under BNS 2023? What is new compared to IPC?
Model Answer:
BNS Section 4 provides seven punishment types: (1) Death; (2) Imprisonment for life; (3) Rigorous imprisonment (with hard labour); (4) Simple imprisonment; (5) Forfeiture of property; (6) Fine; (7) Community service — the last being entirely new to Indian criminal law. IPC provided only the first six. Community service targets minor offences, aiming to reduce India's severe prison overcrowding (occupancy rate: ~118% capacity nationally) and focus on rehabilitation over punitive incarceration for petty crimes.