Section 326A IPC: Voluntarily Causing Grievous Hurt by Use of Acid
Section 326A of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 created a specific and stringent offence for causing serious bodily injury by throwing or administering acid, or by using any other means with the required intention or knowledge.
What Section 326A IPC Provided
Section 326A applied where a person caused permanent or partial damage or deformity, burns, maiming, disfigurement, disability, or grievous hurt by throwing acid on a person, administering acid to that person, or using any other means, with the intention of causing such injury or hurt or with knowledge that such injury or hurt was likely to be caused.
The prescribed punishment was imprisonment of either description for a term of not less than ten years, which could extend to imprisonment for life, together with fine.
The fine was required to be just and reasonable to meet the victim's medical treatment expenses, and the fine imposed under the section was required to be paid to the victim.
Essential Ingredients of the Offence
For Section 326A IPC to apply, the prosecution was required to establish the statutory ingredients of the offence. In substance, these included:
- an act involving throwing acid, administering acid, or using another means capable of causing the specified injury;
- resulting permanent or partial damage or deformity, burns, maiming, disfigurement, disability, or grievous hurt to the victim; and
- the intention to cause such injury or hurt, or knowledge that such injury or hurt was likely to be caused.
The provision therefore addressed both the prohibited conduct and the required mental element. Whether the ingredients were proved depended on the evidence and circumstances of each case.
Meaning of Acid for Sections 326A and 326B IPC
Explanation 1 attached to Sections 326A and 326B gave the term acid a functional meaning. It included a substance having an acidic or corrosive character or a burning nature that was capable of causing bodily injury leading to scars, disfigurement, or temporary or permanent disability.
Explanation 2 clarified that permanent or partial damage or deformity did not have to be irreversible. Thus, the statutory test was not confined to an injury that could never medically improve.
Punishment Under Section 326A IPC
| Minimum imprisonment | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Maximum punishment | Imprisonment for life |
| Fine | Mandatory in addition to imprisonment; it had to be just and reasonable to meet the medical expenses of treatment and was payable to the victim. |
| Nature of offence | Cognizable and non-bailable under the CrPC First Schedule. |
| Court competent to try | Court of Session. |
Victim Compensation and Free Medical Treatment
Section 326A IPC worked alongside the victim-protection provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973. Under Section 357A CrPC, State Governments were required to maintain victim compensation schemes. Section 357B provided that State compensation under Section 357A was in addition to the fine payable to the victim under Section 326A IPC.
Section 357C CrPC required all hospitals, whether public or private and whether run by the Central Government, State Government, local bodies or any other person, to provide immediate first aid or medical treatment free of cost to victims of specified offences including Section 326A IPC and to immediately inform the police.
Section 326A and Section 326B IPC: Basic Difference
Section 326A dealt with the completed offence where the specified injury or grievous hurt was caused. Section 326B IPC separately punished throwing or attempting to throw acid, attempting to administer acid, or attempting to use other means with the specified intention, even where the injury contemplated by Section 326A was not actually caused.
Legislative Background
Sections 326A and 326B were inserted into the Indian Penal Code by the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013. The amendment was deemed to have come into force on 3 February 2013. It created specific offences addressing acid attacks and also amended criminal procedure to provide the corresponding classification, victim compensation and treatment framework.
Related IPC Provisions
For the surrounding statutory scheme, see Section 326 IPC - grievous hurt by dangerous weapons or means, Section 326B IPC - throwing or attempting to throw acid, and the Indian Penal Code, 1860 index.
Practical Legal Note
The precise law applicable to an alleged offence depends particularly on the date of occurrence and the relevant saving and transition provisions. This article is confined to the IPC and CrPC legal framework applicable before the new criminal codes came into force and should be read with the statutory text and case-specific facts.
Last reviewed: 2 October 2026. This page is an informational summary of the pre-BNS statutory position and is not a substitute for legal advice.