BNS Section 100: Culpable homicide (2026)

Explainer · Criminal Law · BNS

Updated for 2026 · Claw Editorial

Culpable homicide is defined in Section 100 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), the new criminal code in force since 1 July 2024. Section 100 replaced Section 299 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). It sets out what culpable homicide is, but it does not fix the punishment on its own. If you still look up "section 299 IPC", this is the provision you now need. This explainer sets out what Section 100 covers, how it maps to the old law, how it differs from murder, and where the punishment actually sits. Last verified October 2026.

01Why the section number matters now

For more than 160 years, "culpable homicide" was defined in Section 299 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Charge sheets, bail orders, and everyday court talk all used that number. Since 1 July 2024 the number has changed. The IPC is replaced by the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS), and the definition of culpable homicide now sits in Section 100.

This matters in practice. An FIR for an offence committed on or after 1 July 2024 is registered under the BNS, so it reads with Section 100, not Section 299. An older case keeps its IPC number, because the law that applies is the law on the date of the offence. So for a while you will see both numbers in live matters, and you need to read each one correctly.

02What Section 100 covers

Section 100 of the BNS defines culpable homicide. It is the base offence of unlawful killing. Culpable homicide is causing death by an act done with one of the mental states the section lists. It does not, on its own, prescribe a sentence.

Culpable homicide is the wider category. Murder is the aggravated form of culpable homicide. In other words, every murder is a culpable homicide, but not every culpable homicide is a murder. Section 100 draws the outer circle; Section 101 (murder) draws the smaller circle inside it.

03The three mental states

To prove culpable homicide, the prosecution must show a death caused by the act of the accused, together with one of three states of mind. In plain terms, the act must be done:

• with the intention of causing death;
• with the intention of causing such bodily injury as is likely to cause death; or
• with the knowledge that the act is likely to cause death.

An explanation to the section deals with existing illness. A person who causes bodily injury to someone already suffering from a disorder, disease or bodily infirmity, and so hastens that person's death, is taken to have caused the death. There are also illustrations in the section that show how these mental states work in real situations.

04Old to new: IPC 299 to BNS 100

Section 299 of the IPC is now Section 100 of the BNS. The definition, including the three mental states and the explanation, is carried over in substance.

The grid above is the map most advocates need in the first year of the new code. The definition moved, but the structure (define culpable homicide, then define and punish murder, then punish the lesser killing) is the same.

05Classification and where the punishment sits

Section 100 sets no punishment by itself, because it is only the definition. The sentence depends on which punishing section the killing falls under.

• If the culpable homicide amounts to murder, it is punished under Section 103 of the BNS (old Section 302 IPC).
• If it is culpable homicide not amounting to murder, it is punished under Section 105 of the BNS (old Section 304 IPC).

Killings of this gravity are serious offences. A charge of culpable homicide not amounting to murder or of murder is cognizable and non-bailable and is tried by the Court of Session. For the exact classification of the charge in a given case, read the punishing section and the First Schedule of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS).

06What changed from the old law

For the definition of culpable homicide, the change is mostly the number. The three mental states, the explanation, and the illustrations are carried forward, so decades of case law under Section 299 of the IPC still guide how Section 100 is read.

The important thing to get right is the pairing. Culpable homicide (Section 100) is the genus. Murder (Section 101) is the aggravated species. The sentence is never found in Section 100; it is found in the punishing section that applies to the facts. This is general information, not legal advice, so check the current text and take advice from counsel before you act.

07Where Claw fits

Claw is an all-in-one legaltech platform for Indian advocates, law firms, and corporate legal teams, combining AI-based case search, an AI legal assistant (Legal GPT), case management, and compliance automation across all Indian courts and tribunals.

The line between culpable homicide and murder is one of the oldest and most fought-over questions in Indian criminal trials, and it runs through Sessions courts and High Courts to this day. Claw opens up more than 30 crore judgments, searchable by the old Section 299 as much as the new Section 100, or by party or advocate, with each search answered in under 5 seconds. Because the High Court record goes back to 1990 and the Supreme Court to 1950, the decades of reasoning on Section 299 that still guide Section 100 are within reach. Claw also tracks the cases, orders and hearings in a live matter across 9,102 courts, benches and forums.

Your case documents are never used to train Claw's AI models, so nothing you upload about a homicide brief leaves your hands. Start a free Claw account to look up and follow these matters by party or advocate name. For the wider picture, see case search across Indian courts.

08Sources and further reading

• India Code (official text of the BNS, 2023): indiacode.nic.in
• PRS Legislative Research (BNS overview and IPC comparison): prsindia.org
• Section 100, BNS (bare text): devgan.in
• Claw: clawlaw.in

This explainer is general information, not legal advice. The law changes through amendments and judgments, so check the current text and take advice from counsel before you act.

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