Section 139 IPC - Persons Subject to Certain Acts
Section 139 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 was an exclusion provision in Chapter VII. It provided that persons subject to the specified armed forces service laws were not subject to punishment under the IPC for offences defined in that chapter.
Text and effect of Section 139 IPC
139. Persons subject to certain Acts. No person subject to the Army Act, 1950 (46 of 1950), the Navy Act, 1957 (62 of 1957), or the Air Force Act, 1950 (45 of 1950), is subject to punishment under this Code for any of the offences defined in this Chapter.
Meaning of Section 139 IPC
Section 139 did not define a separate criminal offence and did not prescribe a sentence. Its purpose was to delimit the application of Chapter VII of the IPC, which dealt with offences relating to the Army, Navy and Air Force. Where a person was subject to the specified service legislation, Section 139 excluded punishment under the IPC for offences defined in that chapter.
Which laws were relevant?
| Service | Applicable legislation immediately before BNS |
|---|---|
| Army | Army Act, 1950 (46 of 1950) |
| Navy | Navy Act, 1957 (62 of 1957) |
| Air Force | Air Force Act, 1950 (45 of 1950) |
The older text and amendment history of Section 139 contained references to predecessor military statutes. For a pre-BNS article reflecting the law immediately before the new criminal codes commenced, the operative service legislation is more clearly stated by reference to the Army Act, 1950, Navy Act, 1957 and Air Force Act, 1950.
Scope of the exclusion
- The person must be subject to one of the specified armed forces service laws.
- The exclusion concerns punishment under the IPC.
- It is confined to offences defined in Chapter VII of the IPC.
- Section 139 itself neither creates an offence nor provides a punishment.
Why Section 139 mattered
Chapter VII contained offences concerning mutiny, assault on superior officers, desertion, harbouring deserters, insubordination and related conduct affecting the armed forces. Section 139 prevented the IPC provisions in that chapter from operating as the source of punishment for persons who were themselves subject to the specified military service laws.
No IPC punishment or CrPC offence classification under Section 139 itself
| Nature | Exclusion provision, not a substantive offence |
|---|---|
| IPC punishment | None prescribed by Section 139 |
| Cognizable / non-cognizable | Not applicable to Section 139 itself |
| Bailable / non-bailable | Not applicable to Section 139 itself |
| Trial court | Not applicable to Section 139 itself |
Historical amendment notes
1. Act 10 of 1927 substituted the then applicable service-law references for the earlier reference to Articles of War.
2. Act 3 of 1951 substituted the Army Act, 1950 for the Indian Army Act, 1911.
3. Earlier naval references were altered by amendments including Act 35 of 1934; the later governing naval legislation was the Navy Act, 1957.
4. The Adaptation of Laws Order, 1950 omitted obsolete wording in the provision.
5. The Air Force references were amended over time, including by Act 14 of 1932 and Act 3 of 1951, with the Air Force Act, 1950 becoming the relevant statute.
Related IPC provisions
Section 139 appeared near the end of Chapter VII. The preceding provisions addressed offences connected with military discipline, including Section 135 IPC on abetment of desertion, Section 136 IPC on harbouring a deserter, and Section 138 IPC on abetment of insubordination.