IPC Section 302 (Murder) — Now BNS 103: Punishment, Bail & Case Law

Indian Penal Code  •  Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita  •  Criminal Law

IPC Section 302 (Murder) — Now Section 103 BNS: Punishment, Bail & Case Law

A complete guide to the law of murder in India — its definition, exceptions, the death-penalty doctrine, landmark judgments, and where “302” lives in the new code.

By Akinchan Aggarwal, Advocate, Punjab & Haryana High Court  |  Lawizard  |  Last updated: July 2026

Quick answer: IPC Section 302 lays down the punishment for murder — death, or imprisonment for life, and fine. The offence of murder is defined separately in Section 300 IPC. It is a cognizable, non-bailable and non-compoundable offence, triable by a Court of Session. From 1 July 2024, with the Indian Penal Code replaced by the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS), the punishment for murder is now found in Section 103 BNS.

“302” is, along with “420”, one of the most recognised numbers in Indian criminal law — shorthand for the gravest offence a person can commit: taking another human life. Yet Section 302 itself only supplies the punishment; to understand when a killing is “murder” you have to read it together with Section 300, and to understand when it is not murder you have to know the five statutory exceptions. This detailed guide walks through the entire scheme — definition, ingredients, exceptions, punishment, the “rarest of rare” doctrine, the crucial line between murder and culpable homicide, the leading Supreme Court authorities, and the new BNS mapping.

IPC Homicide Sections vs New BNS Sections

IPC (old)	Subject	BNS 2023 (new)
Section 299	Culpable homicide (definition)	Section 100
Section 300	Murder (definition)	Section 101
Section 302	Punishment for murder	Section 103
Section 304	Punishment — culpable homicide not amounting to murder	Section 105
Section 307	Attempt to murder	Section 109

In short, the famous “Section 302” is now Section 103 of the BNS, and the punishment is unchanged. A significant addition in the BNS is Section 103(2), which specifically punishes murder by a group of five or more persons on grounds of race, caste, community, sex, language, place of birth or personal belief — i.e., mob lynching.

What Is “Murder”? (Section 300 IPC / Section 101 BNS)

Murder is a special, aggravated form of culpable homicide. Under Section 300 IPC, culpable homicide amounts to murder if the act by which death is caused is done in any of these four situations:

1. Intention to cause death — the act is done with the intention of causing death; or
2. Intention to cause a fatal injury known to the offender — with the intention of causing such bodily injury as the offender knows to be likely to cause the death of the person harmed; or
3. Intention to cause an objectively fatal injury — with the intention of causing bodily injury that is sufficient in the ordinary course of nature to cause death; or
4. Knowledge of imminently dangerous act — the person knows the act is so imminently dangerous that it must, in all probability, cause death, and does it without any excuse for incurring that risk.

The classic test for the third clause was laid down in Virsa Singh v. State of Punjab (1958): the prosecution must prove that the bodily injury was intended and that the injury was, objectively, sufficient in the ordinary course of nature to cause death. Motive and the exact fatal mechanism need not be proved.

When Culpable Homicide Is NOT Murder — The 5 Exceptions

Even where the ingredients above are met, the offence is reduced from murder to culpable homicide not amounting to murder (punishable under Section 304 IPC / Section 105 BNS) if it falls within one of the five exceptions to Section 300:

1. Grave and sudden provocation — the offender is deprived of self-control by grave and sudden provocation (the provocation must not be self-invited or given by a lawful act).
2. Exceeding the right of private defence — the offender, in good faith exercising the right of private defence of person or property, exceeds the power given by law without premeditation.
3. Act of a public servant — a public servant, acting in good faith and believing his act to be lawful and necessary for discharging his duty, exceeds his powers.
4. Sudden fight — the death is caused in a sudden fight in the heat of passion, upon a sudden quarrel, without premeditation and without the offender taking undue advantage or acting in a cruel manner.
5. Consent — the deceased, being above 18 years of age, suffers death or takes the risk of death with his own consent.

The scope of Exception 1 was famously tested in K.M. Nanavati v. State of Maharashtra (1962), where the Supreme Court held that the provocation must be both grave and sudden, and that a “cooling-off” period between the provocation and the killing takes the case outside the exception.

Punishment under Section 302 IPC / Section 103 BNS

Whoever commits murder “shall be punished with death, or imprisonment for life, and shall also be liable to fine.” Two points are essential for any student or litigant to understand:

• Life imprisonment is the rule; death is the exception. A sentence of life imprisonment ordinarily means imprisonment for the remainder of the convict's natural life, not 14 or 20 years, unless remitted by the appropriate government.
• The death penalty is reserved for the “rarest of rare” cases. Courts must record “special reasons” and balance aggravating and mitigating circumstances before imposing it.

The “Rarest of Rare” Doctrine: In Bachan Singh v. State of Punjab (1980), a Constitution Bench upheld the death penalty but confined it to the “rarest of rare” cases where the alternative of life imprisonment is “unquestionably foreclosed.” In Machhi Singh v. State of Punjab (1983), the Court laid down practical guidelines — the manner of commission, motive, anti-social nature, magnitude and the personality of the victim — for identifying such cases.

Nature of the Offence — Bailable, Cognizable & Triable By

Cognizable / Non-cognizable	Cognizable
Bailable / Non-bailable	Non-bailable
Compoundable / Non-compoundable	Non-compoundable
Triable by	Court of Session

Because murder is a non-bailable offence carrying the gravest sentences, bail is not a matter of right. An application for regular bail lies before the Court of Session and the High Court, and is granted only after careful scrutiny of the evidence, the role of the accused, and the risk of tampering with witnesses. Anticipatory bail is rarely granted in murder cases.

Murder vs Culpable Homicide — The Crucial Distinction

This is the single most examined and litigated distinction in Indian criminal law. The Supreme Court in State of Andhra Pradesh v. Rayavarapu Punnayya (1976) memorably explained that culpable homicide is the genus, and murder is the species — “all murder is culpable homicide, but all culpable homicide is not murder.” The difference lies in the degree of intention or knowledge.

Basis	Culpable Homicide (S.299 IPC / S.100 BNS)	Murder (S.300 IPC / S.101 BNS)
Degree of intention	Lower — injury “likely” to cause death	Higher — injury “sufficient in the ordinary course of nature” to cause death
Certainty of death	Death is a likely/probable result	Death is the most probable/near-certain result
Punishment	S.304 IPC / S.105 BNS — up to life or up to 10 years	S.302 IPC / S.103 BNS — death or life + fine

The century-old case of Reg v. Govinda (1876) remains the classic illustration of this graded distinction.

Landmark Supreme Court Judgments on Section 302

• Bachan Singh v. State of Punjab (1980) — upheld the constitutionality of the death penalty and confined it to the “rarest of rare” cases.
• Machhi Singh v. State of Punjab (1983) — laid down the aggravating/mitigating framework for applying the rarest-of-rare test.
• Virsa Singh v. State of Punjab (1958) — settled the interpretation of “bodily injury sufficient in the ordinary course of nature to cause death” (third clause of Section 300).
• K.M. Nanavati v. State of Maharashtra (1962) — clarified the “grave and sudden provocation” exception and the effect of a cooling-off period.
• State of A.P. v. Rayavarapu Punnayya (1976) — the leading authority on the genus–species relationship between culpable homicide and murder.

Illustrative Examples

• Clear murder: A shoots B in the head at close range intending to kill him — Section 302 (intention to cause death).
• Third-clause murder: A stabs B in the chest with a knife, causing an injury sufficient in the ordinary course of nature to cause death — murder, even if A did not specifically intend death (Virsa Singh).
• Sudden fight (not murder): Two neighbours quarrel suddenly, come to blows, and one dies from a single blow struck in the heat of passion without premeditation — culpable homicide under Exception 4, punishable under Section 304.
• Grave & sudden provocation (not murder): A finds his spouse in a compromising situation and, losing self-control instantly, causes death — may fall under Exception 1, subject to the “cooling-off” test in Nanavati.

FIR, Investigation & Trial in a Section 302 Case

Because murder is a cognizable offence, the police can register an FIR and begin investigation without the Magistrate's prior order. After investigation, the police file a charge-sheet, the case is committed to the Court of Session, charges are framed, and the trial proceeds with examination of witnesses. The prosecution must prove the guilt beyond reasonable doubt; the burden of bringing a case within an exception to Section 300 lies on the accused.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q1. What is Section 302 in simple words?

It is the section that punishes murder with death or life imprisonment and fine. The definition of murder is in Section 300 IPC. In the new code it is Section 103 BNS.

Q2. How many years is life imprisonment under Section 302?

Life imprisonment ordinarily means imprisonment for the whole of the convict's remaining natural life, unless the sentence is remitted or commuted by the appropriate government.

Q3. Is Section 302 IPC still used after the BNS?

Murders committed before 1 July 2024 are tried under IPC Section 302; those on or after that date are registered under Section 103 BNS. The punishment is identical.

Q4. Can a Section 302 charge be reduced to Section 304?

Yes. If the killing falls within one of the five exceptions to Section 300 (e.g., grave and sudden provocation or a sudden fight), the offence is reduced to culpable homicide not amounting to murder under Section 304 IPC / Section 105 BNS.

Related Reading

Link these to your other bare-act posts as you publish them:
• IPC Section 304 (Culpable Homicide not amounting to Murder) — now BNS Section 105
• IPC Section 307 (Attempt to Murder) — now BNS Section 109
• Difference between Murder and Culpable Homicide — Explained
• The Rarest of Rare Doctrine — Death Penalty in India

Disclaimer: This article is for general information and legal awareness only and is not legal advice. Whether a killing amounts to murder under Section 302 IPC / Section 103 BNS depends entirely on the facts and evidence of each case. Please consult a qualified advocate for advice on a specific matter.

About the Author

Akinchan Aggarwal

Advocate, Punjab & Haryana High Court  |  B.A. Hons. (Social Sciences), LL.B, LL.M (Gold Medalist)  |  UGC NET  |  Co-founder, Lawizard.

Tags: IPC Section 302, Section 302 punishment, murder punishment India, BNS Section 103, IPC 302 in BNS, is 302 bailable, rarest of rare, murder vs culpable homicide, bare act, criminal law, Lawizard.