178. Whoever counterfeits, or knowingly performs any part of the process of counterfeiting, any coin, stamp issued by Government for the purpose of revenue, currency-note or bank-note, shall be punished with imprisonment for life, or with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to fine. Explanation.—For the purposes of this Chapter,— (1) the expression “bank-note” means a promissory note or engagement for the payment of money to bearer on demand issued by any person carrying on the business of banking in any part of the world, or issued by or under the authority of any State or Sovereign Power, and intended to be used as equivalent to, or as a substitute for money; (2) “coin” shall have the same meaning as assigned to it in section 2 of the Coinage Act, 2011 (11 of 2011) and includes metal used for the time being as money and is stamped and issued by or under the authority of any State or Sovereign Power intended to be so used; (3) a person commits the offence of “counterfeiting Government stamp” who counterfeits by causing a genuine stamp of one denomination to appear like a genuine stamp of a different denomination; (4) a person commits the offence of counterfeiting coin who intending to practise deception, or knowing it to be likely that deception will thereby be practised, causes a genuine coin to appear like a different coin; and (5) the offence of “counterfeiting coin” includes diminishing the weight or alteration of the composition, or alteration of the appearance of the coin.
IPC Section 232 in BNS: Section 178
Counterfeiting coin, Government stamps, currency-notes or bank-notes
Section 232 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (Counterfeiting coin, Government stamps, currency-notes or bank-notes) corresponds to Section 178 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, in force from 1 July 2024. Under the BNSS First Schedule, BNS 178 is cognizable, non-bailable, triable by Court of Session; punishment: Imprisonment for life, or imprisonment for 10 years and fine.
Bail, cognizability and punishment
| Section | Offence | Punishment | Cognizable | Bailable | Triable by |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 178 | Counterfeiting coins, government stamps, currency-notes or bank-notes. | Imprisonment for life, or imprisonment for 10 years and fine. | Cognizable | Non-bailable | Court of Session |
Source: BNSS, 2023, First Schedule, Part I.
The BNS applies to offences committed on or after 1 July 2024. Offences committed earlier are charged and tried under the IPC.
Text of BNS Section 178
Full BNS Section 178 and every IPC section it replaced →
Other IPC sections now in BNS 178
- IPC 230: “Coin” defined → BNS 178(2)
- IPC 231: Counterfeiting coin → BNS 178
- IPC 246: Fraudulently or dishonestly diminishing weight or altering composition of coin → BNS 178
- IPC 247 → BNS 178
- IPC 248 → BNS 178
- IPC 249 → BNS 178
- IPC 255 → BNS 178
- IPC 489A → BNS 178
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