IPC Sections 295 to 298: Offences Relating to Religion
Chapter XV of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 dealt with offences relating to religion. Sections 295, 295A, 296, 297 and 298 addressed injury or defilement of places of worship, deliberate and malicious insults to religion, disturbance of religious assemblies, trespass at burial or worship places, indignity to corpses, and words or gestures deliberately intended to wound religious feelings.
- Section 295 - Injuring or defiling place of worship
- Section 295A - Deliberate and malicious insult to religion
- Section 296 - Disturbing religious assembly
- Section 297 - Trespassing on burial places and related acts
- Section 298 - Deliberate words or gestures wounding religious feelings
- Classification and punishment
- Previous sanction for Section 295A
Chapter XV of the Indian Penal Code, 1860
The provisions in Chapter XV protected places and objects regarded as sacred, lawful religious worship and ceremonies, burial and funeral places, human remains, and religious feelings in the circumstances specifically defined by the IPC. Liability depended on the particular intention, knowledge or conduct required by each section; the mere fact that conduct concerned religion did not by itself establish every offence in this Chapter.
Section 295 IPC - Injuring or defiling place of worship
Section 295 applied where a person destroyed, damaged or defiled a place of worship or an object held sacred by a class of persons, with the intention of insulting the religion of a class or with knowledge that the class was likely to regard the act as an insult to its religion.
Key ingredients: there had to be destruction, damage or defilement of a protected place or sacred object together with the intention or knowledge specified in the section. The maximum punishment was imprisonment of either description for two years, or fine, or both.
Section 295A IPC - Deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings
Section 295A dealt with deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage the religious feelings of a class of citizens of India by insulting, or attempting to insult, its religion or religious beliefs through words, whether spoken or written, signs, visible representations or otherwise.
Key requirement: the statutory mental element was a deliberate and malicious intention to outrage the religious feelings of the relevant class. The maximum punishment under the central IPC was imprisonment of either description for three years, or fine, or both.
Section 296 IPC - Disturbing religious assembly
Section 296 punished a person who voluntarily caused disturbance to an assembly lawfully engaged in religious worship or religious ceremonies. The maximum punishment was imprisonment of either description for one year, or fine, or both.
Section 297 IPC - Trespassing on burial places and related acts
Section 297 covered specified conduct at a place of worship, place of sepulchre, place set apart for funeral rites or a depository for the remains of the dead. It also covered offering indignity to a human corpse or disturbing persons assembled for funeral ceremonies where the required intention or knowledge existed.
The maximum punishment was imprisonment of either description for one year, or fine, or both.
Section 298 IPC - Words or gestures intended to wound religious feelings
Section 298 applied where a person, with the deliberate intention of wounding the religious feelings of another person, uttered a word or made a sound in that person's hearing, made a gesture in that person's sight, or placed an object in that person's sight. The maximum punishment was imprisonment of either description for one year, or fine, or both.
Classification of offences under the pre-BNSS CrPC
| IPC Section | Offence | Punishment | Cognizability | Bail | Court triable |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 295 | Destroying, damaging or defiling a place of worship or sacred object with the required intent or knowledge | Up to 2 years, or fine, or both | Cognizable | Non-bailable | Any Magistrate |
| 295A | Deliberate and malicious insult to religion or religious beliefs intended to outrage religious feelings of a class | Up to 3 years, or fine, or both | Cognizable | Non-bailable | Magistrate of the first class |
| 296 | Voluntarily disturbing an assembly lawfully engaged in religious worship or ceremonies | Up to 1 year, or fine, or both | Cognizable | Bailable | Any Magistrate |
| 297 | Trespass at specified religious or burial places, indignity to corpse, or disturbance of funeral ceremonies with required intent or knowledge | Up to 1 year, or fine, or both | Cognizable | Bailable | Any Magistrate |
| 298 | Words, sounds, gestures or objects used with deliberate intention to wound religious feelings of a person | Up to 1 year, or fine, or both | Non-cognizable | Bailable | Any Magistrate |
The classification above states the central First Schedule position under the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 immediately before BNSS commenced. A State amendment may have altered the position for proceedings governed by that State's law.
Section 295A and previous sanction under Section 196 CrPC
Under Section 196(1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, a court could not take cognizance of an offence punishable under Section 295A IPC without the previous sanction of the Central Government or the State Government. This procedural requirement was distinct from the ingredients that had to be proved for the substantive offence under Section 295A.
Difference between Sections 295 and 295A IPC
Section 295 principally concerned destruction, damage or defilement of a place of worship or sacred object accompanied by the prescribed intention or knowledge. Section 295A addressed deliberate and malicious insults, or attempted insults, to the religion or religious beliefs of a class of citizens with the intention of outraging their religious feelings. The provisions therefore protected different interests and contained different statutory ingredients.
Related legal resources
For the complete statutory framework, readers may consult the India Code, the Indian Penal Code overview and the Code of Criminal Procedure overview.