Section 71 IPC: Limit of punishment of offence made up of several offences
Indian Penal Code, 1860
Section 71 IPC at a Glance
Section 71 IPC deals with limit of punishment of offence made up of several offences. From 1 July 2024 it is replaced by Section 9 BNS.
None. Section 71 IPC creates no offence.
Section 71 IPC Bare Act Text
71. Limit of punishment of offence made up of several offences
Where anything which is an offence is made up of parts, any of which parts is itself an offence, the offender shall not be punished with the punishment of more than one of such his offences, unless it be so expressly provided.
Where anything is 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, or where several acts, of which one or more than one would by itself or themselves constitute an offence, constitute, when combined, a different offence, the offender shall not be punished with a more severe punishment than the Court which tries him could award for any one of such offences.
Illustrations(a) A gives Z fifty strokes with a stick. Here A may have committed the offence of voluntarily causing hurt to Z by the whole beating, and also by each of the blows which make up the whole beating. If A were liable to punishment for every blow, he might be imprisoned for fifty years, one for each blow. But he is liable only to one punishment for the whole beating.
(b) But, if, while A is beating Z, Y interferes, and A intentionally strikes Y, here, as the blow given to Y is no part of the act whereby A voluntarily causes hurt to Z, A is liable to one punishment for voluntarily causing hurt to Z, and to another for the blow given to Y.
Source: Section 71, Indian Penal Code, 1860
Section 71 IPC in Simple Words
Section 71 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) limits how far the same conduct can be punished more than once. Where an offence is made up of parts and any of the parts is itself an offence, the offender is not punished with the punishment of more than one of those offences, unless the law expressly provides it.
Where one thing falls within two or more separate definitions of offences, or where several acts combine to make a different offence, the offender is not punished more severely than the Court which tries him could award for any one of those offences. The section creates no offence and sets no punishment of its own.
Ingredients of Section 71 IPC
- Anything is an offence made up of parts, and one or more of those parts is itself an offence
- The offender is not punished with the punishment of more than one of such his offences, unless the law expressly provides it
- Or anything is 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
- Or several acts, of which one or more would by itself or themselves constitute an offence, constitute when combined a different offence
- The offender is not punished with a more severe punishment than the Court which tries him could award for any one of such offences
Punishment Under Section 71 IPC
None. Section 71 IPC creates no offence.
None.
Section 71 IPC limits punishment. It has no entry in the First Schedule to the CrPC.
Example of Section 71 IPC
When Section 71 IPC Does Not Apply
- Section 71 IPC does not prevent multiple punishments when the law in force expressly provides that the offender may be punished for more than one of the component offences.
- Section 71 IPC does not apply when an offender commits distinct and independent offences in separate transactions rather than parts of a single offence.
- Section 71 IPC does not protect an offender from separate punishment when, while assaulting one victim, the offender intentionally strikes a second person who intervenes.
Section 71 IPC in the BNS
Section 71 IPC is now covered under Section 9 BNS.
Section 9 BNS keeps the rule and sets it out in two numbered parts. Section 9(1) BNS carries the first paragraph in the same words. Section 9(2) BNS carries the second paragraph, with its two cases laid out as separate clauses, and the illustrations are unchanged.
View detailed comparison (IPC 71 vs BNS 9) →FAQs on Section 71 IPC
What does Section 71 IPC say?▼
That where an offence is made up of parts, each of which is itself an offence, the offender is not punished with the punishment of more than one of them unless the law expressly provides it. It also caps the punishment where an act falls within two or more definitions or several acts combine into a different offence.
Under Section 71 IPC, can a person be punished for every blow in one beating?▼
No. The illustration to the section says the offender is liable to only one punishment for the whole beating, though he may be punished again for a blow that is no part of it.
Under Section 71 IPC, what is the limit where an act falls within two or more definitions?▼
The offender cannot be punished more severely than the Court which tries him could award for any one of those offences.
Does Section 71 IPC create an offence?▼
No. It is a rule limiting punishment and sets no punishment of its own.
What is the BNS equivalent of Section 71 IPC?▼
Section 9 BNS, with the first paragraph as Section 9(1) BNS and the second as Section 9(2) BNS.
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Sources: Bare Act Text, Indian Penal Code, 1860 · Last updated: 16 Oct 2026 ·