CLAT PG Criminal Law Important Topics: BNS, BNSS, BSA

The CLAT PG criminal law important topics for 2027 are the general principles and general exceptions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), offences against the body (Sections 100 to 117), offences against women (Sections 63 to 87), property offences (Sections 303 to 318), arrest, FIR and bail under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), and confessions and electronic evidence under the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA). All three laws have been in force since 1 July 2024, so CLAT PG 2027 on 6 December 2026 will use the new section numbers, often with the old IPC, CrPC or Evidence Act section mentioned in the passage.

Why criminal law for CLAT PG now means BNS, BNSS and BSA

Criminal Law is one of the 13 subjects in the official CLAT 2027 PG syllabus. A passage may come from a judgment under the old law while the question asks for the new section, so learn the concept, the leading case and both section numbers together. Keep the IPC to BNS conversion table beside you while revising.

CLAT PG criminal law important topics: BNS sections

• General principles: BNS 4 (punishments, now including community service), 3(5) (common intention, old 34), 45 and 49 (abetment), 61 (conspiracy), 62 (attempt, old 511).
• General exceptions (14 to 44): mistake of fact (14 and 17), accident (18), necessity (19), child under seven (20), insanity (22), intoxication (23 and 24), consent (25 to 28), private defence (34 to 44).
• Homicide: 100 culpable homicide, 101 murder, 102 transferred intent, 103 punishment for murder (103(2) covers murder by a group of five or more on grounds such as race, caste, sex or language, the “mob lynching” clause), 105 punishment for culpable homicide not amounting to murder, 106 death by negligence. Section 106(2), the stricter hit-and-run clause, has not been brought into force.
• Offences against women and children: 63 and 64 (rape), 69 (sexual intercourse by deceitful means or false promise to marry, new), 70 (gang rape), 74 (old 354), 79 (old 509), 80 (dowry death, old 304B), 85 and 86 (cruelty, old 498A). Adultery is not an offence, following Joseph Shine (2018).
• New offences: 111 (organised crime), 112 (petty organised crime), 113 (terrorist act), 152 (replaced sedition).
• Property: 303 (theft), 304 (snatching, new), 308 (extortion), 309 (robbery), 310 (dacoity), 316 (criminal breach of trust), 318 (cheating).

BNSS and BSA for CLAT PG: procedure and evidence

• FIR: BNSS 173 allows information “irrespective of the area where the offence is committed” (zero FIR) and e-FIR, signed within three days; refusal goes to the SP under 173(4), then the Magistrate under 175(3). Lalita Kumari (2013) still governs mandatory registration.
• Arrest: BNSS 35 (old 41 and 41A merged), 43 (handcuffing in specified cases), 47 (grounds of arrest and right to bail), 48 (inform relative or friend), 58 (production within 24 hours).
• Custody and bail: 187 (police custody can be taken in parts within the first 40 or 60 days), 478 (bailable), 480 (non-bailable), 482 (anticipatory bail), 483 (High Court and Sessions Court), 479 (first-time undertrial released after one-third of the maximum sentence). Read Arnesh Kumar (2014) and Satender Kumar Antil (2022) on arrest and bail.
• Trial and others: 356 (trial in absentia), 176(3) (forensic team for offences punishable with 7 years or more), 105 (videography of search), 528 (inherent powers, old 482), 144 (maintenance, old 125).
• Evidence: BSA 2 (“document” includes electronic records), 22 (confession caused by inducement), 23 (confession to police and in custody; its proviso is old Section 27 on discovery), 24 (confession of co-accused), 26 (dying declaration, old 32), 63 (electronic records, old 65B), 104 to 109 (burden of proof), 118 (dowry death presumption), 157 (hostile witness).

Criminal law judgments for CLAT PG

Classic cases

• State of A.P. v. Rayavarapu Punnayya (1976): the line between culpable homicide and murder.
• Virsa Singh v. State of Punjab (1958): the test for clause thirdly of murder.
• K.M. Nanavati v. State of Maharashtra (1961): grave and sudden provocation is judged by the reasonable person standard and is lost if the accused had time to cool down, as Nanavati did.
• Bachan Singh v. State of Punjab (1980): death penalty only in the “rarest of rare” cases.
• Pulukuri Kottaya v. Emperor (1946): only the part of the statement distinctly relating to the fact discovered is admissible.
• Arjun Panditrao Khotkar (2020): the electronic evidence certificate (old 65B(4), now BSA 63) is mandatory.

Recent rulings, 2025 and 2026

• Vihaan Kumar v. State of Haryana (February 2025): failure to inform the arrested person of the grounds of arrest violates Article 22(1) and vitiates the arrest.
• Mihir Rajesh Shah v. State of Maharashtra (6 November 2025): written grounds of arrest must be given in every case, under any statute, in a language the person understands; where that is not possible at once, no later than two hours before production for remand. Otherwise the arrest and remand are illegal.
• Pune Bar Association v. Union of India (May 2026): the BSA Section 63(4) certificate requirement for electronic records, including disclosure of the hash value, upheld as not manifestly arbitrary.

More rulings: important Supreme Court judgments for CLAT PG 2027.

Question angles on CLAT PG criminal law important topics

1. Old to new: “The passage discusses Section 304B IPC. Which BNS section now applies?” Answer: Section 80.
2. Murder or culpable homicide: apply the Section 101 exceptions.
3. Private defence: did the accused exceed the right?
4. Arrest rights: apply Article 22(1) and BNSS 47.

Practise with the CLAT PG 2027 online test series, ₹99 or the free CLAT PG online mock.

Frequently asked questions

What are the CLAT PG criminal law important topics for 2027?

The BNS general principles and exceptions, homicide, offences against women, property offences and new offences such as organised crime; under the BNSS, FIR, arrest and bail; and under the BSA, confessions, dying declarations and electronic evidence.

Will CLAT PG 2027 ask IPC or BNS sections?

The BNS, BNSS and BSA have been in force since 1 July 2024, so questions on current law will use them. Be ready to map old IPC, CrPC and Evidence Act sections in older judgments to the new ones.

Which section of the BSA replaced Section 65B of the Evidence Act?

Section 63 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023, with the certificate in the form set out in the Schedule. In May 2026 the Supreme Court upheld the Section 63(4) certificate requirement.

Which BNS section replaced sedition?

Section 152 BNS, on acts endangering the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India, replaced Section 124A IPC. Its wording differs from the old sedition offence.

Quick quiz

Sources

• Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023: Sections 3, 4, 14 to 44, 61 to 87, 100 to 117, 152, 303 to 318
• Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023: Sections 35, 43, 47, 48, 58, 105, 144, 173, 175, 176, 187, 356, 478 to 483, 528
• Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023: Sections 2, 22 to 26, 63, 104 to 109, 118, 157
• Constitution of India, Articles 20, 21 and 22
• Virsa Singh (1958); Nanavati (1961); Bachan Singh (1980); Pulukuri Kottaya (1946); Lalita Kumari (2013); Arnesh Kumar (2014); Arjun Panditrao Khotkar (2020)
• Vihaan Kumar v. State of Haryana (2025); Mihir Rajesh Shah v. State of Maharashtra (2025); Pune Bar Association v. Union of India (2026)

Revise all the CLAT PG criminal law important topics with the CLAT PG Crash Course Part 2.

This page is for education and general information, not legal advice for a specific case. Law as on 29 October 2026.