Section 153B IPC - Imputations and Assertions Prejudicial to National Integration
Section 153B of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 dealt with specified imputations and assertions concerning religious, racial, language or regional groups, castes or communities where the statements concerned allegiance to the Constitution and the sovereignty and integrity of India, denial of citizenship rights, or obligations asserted in a manner causing or likely to cause disharmony, enmity, hatred or ill-will.
Section 153B of the Indian Penal Code 1860
Imputations, assertions prejudicial to national-integration.
(1) Whoever, by words either spoken or written or by signs or by visible representations or otherwise,-
shall be punished with imprisonment which may extend to three years, or with fine, or with both.
(2) Whoever commits an offence specified in sub-section (1) in any place of worship or in any assembly engaged in the performance of religious worship or religious ceremonies, shall be punished with imprisonment which may extend to five years and shall also be liable to fine.
Legislative note: Section 153B was inserted by Act 31 of 1972, section 2.
Meaning and Scope of Section 153B IPC
Section 153B addressed particular forms of group-based imputations and assertions prejudicial to national integration. It did not use a single undifferentiated test. Clauses (a), (b) and (c) described separate forms of prohibited expression, and the ingredients of the clause invoked had to be considered according to its statutory wording.
The provision applied to communication by spoken or written words, signs, visible representations or otherwise. The relevant statement or publication had to concern a class of persons by reason of membership of a religious, racial, language or regional group, caste or community.
Section 153B(1)(a) - Allegiance to Constitution and Integrity of India
Clause (a) covered making or publishing an imputation that a class of persons, because they belonged to one of the groups, castes or communities specified in the section, could not bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India as by law established or uphold the sovereignty and integrity of India.
The group-based reason stated in the clause was an express part of the statutory formulation. The provision therefore required attention not merely to criticism or discussion in the abstract but to the particular imputation described by clause (a).
Section 153B(1)(b) - Denial of Rights as Citizens of India
Clause (b) covered asserting, counselling, advising, propagating or publishing that a class of persons should, because of their membership of a specified religious, racial, language or regional group, caste or community, be denied or deprived of their rights as citizens of India.
Section 153B(1)(c) - Assertions Concerning Group Obligations
Clause (c) addressed an assertion, counsel, plea or appeal concerning the obligation of a class of persons by reason of their membership of a specified group, caste or community. In addition, the assertion, counsel, plea or appeal had to cause or be likely to cause disharmony or feelings of enmity, hatred or ill-will between those members and other persons.
The actual or likely consequence stated in clause (c) is therefore part of that clause's statutory formulation.
Essential Elements of Section 153B IPC
- There must be words, whether spoken or written, signs, visible representations or other relevant communication.
- The communication must fall within the particular conduct described in clause (a), (b) or (c).
- The relevant class of persons must be referred to by reason of membership of a religious, racial, language or regional group, caste or community as stated in the section.
- For clause (c), the assertion, counsel, plea or appeal must cause or be likely to cause the disharmony, enmity, hatred or ill-will specified in that clause.
Offence at a Place of Worship Under Section 153B(2)
Sub-section (2) prescribed enhanced punishment when an offence specified in sub-section (1) was committed in a place of worship or in an assembly engaged in the performance of religious worship or religious ceremonies. In such a case, imprisonment could extend to five years and the offender was also liable to fine.
Punishment Under Section 153B IPC
| Provision | Punishment before BNS |
|---|---|
| Section 153B(1) | Imprisonment up to three years, or fine, or both |
| Section 153B(2) | Imprisonment up to five years and fine |
| Nature under CrPC | Cognizable and non-bailable |
| Trial | Any Magistrate for the ordinary offence; Magistrate of the first class for the enhanced place-of-worship offence |
Section 153B and Section 153A IPC
Section 153A IPC addressed specified conduct promoting or attempting to promote disharmony, enmity, hatred or ill-will between groups and other conduct described in that provision. Section 153B focused on the particular imputations and assertions set out in clauses (a), (b) and (c), including matters concerning constitutional allegiance, sovereignty and integrity, citizenship rights and group obligations.
Context and the Statutory Ingredients
Whether particular words or representations attracted Section 153B depended on their complete content and context and on whether the ingredients of the specific clause alleged were satisfied. The statutory language should therefore be applied to the communication as a whole and to the class of persons and group-based reason to which it refers.
This page describes Section 153B of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 in its pre-BNS legal context. Application to a particular matter depends on the applicable law, the complete words or representations alleged, their context and the ingredients of the specific statutory clause.