BNS Section 351 (IPC 506): criminal intimidation

The number IPC 503, 506 and 507 have now, what makes a threat an offence, which threats carry seven years, and why the police send you to a Magistrate.

Quick answer

Section 351 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita is criminal intimidation, and replaced IPC sections 503, 506 and 507 for offences on or after 1 July 2024. IPC 506 is now 351(2) and 351(3): up to two years, or up to seven where the threat is of death, grievous hurt or the other graver harms listed. An anonymous threat adds up to two years under 351(4). Every form is non-cognizable and bailable, so the police refer the complainant to a Magistrate.

Punishes threatening someone with injury to their person, reputation or property — or to someone they care about — to alarm them or to make them act against their legal rights.

Now: BNS 351 — Criminal intimidation
Was: IPC 503 / 506 / 507
Punishment: Up to 2 years, or fine, or both; up to 7 years for threats of death, grievous hurt and the other harms in 351(3); up to 2 years more if anonymous
Arrest without warrant: Non-cognizable
Bail: Bailable
Compounding: Depends on the sub-section — see below
Tried by: Any Magistrate / Magistrate of the first class

Read this first: Non-cognizable: the police record what you report and refer you to a Magistrate, and cannot investigate without the Magistrate’s order (BNSS s. 174). Only 351(2) and 351(3) can be compounded.

The number it had, and the number it has

Repealed — Indian Penal Code, 1860

IPC 503 / 506 / 507

Criminal intimidation.

In force — Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023

BNS 351(1)

Criminal intimidation.

Merged

Several provisions of the Indian Penal Code were folded into one section of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, landing in its sub-sections. So the new number alone is not the answer — the sub-section is.

How this provision was renumbered
IPC 503	becomes BNS 351(1)	merged
IPC 506	becomes BNS 351(2), 351(3)	merged
IPC 507	becomes BNS 351(4)	merged

Key takeaways

IPC 503 became 351(1), IPC 506 became 351(2) and 351(3), and IPC 507 became 351(4); all four now sit in one section.
A threat of death, grievous hurt, arson, a serious offence, or of imputing unchastity to a woman moves the maximum from two years to seven (s. 351(3)).
Non-cognizable means the police record the information and refer you to the Magistrate; they cannot investigate without the Magistrate’s order (BNSS s. 174).
The person intimidated can settle a case under 351(2) or 351(3) without the court’s permission; 351(4) is not compoundable at all (BNSS s. 359).
If the same facts also disclose a cognizable offence, such as extortion, the whole case is treated as cognizable (BNSS s. 174(4)).

What BNS 351 actually requires

Every part below has to be present. This is not a list of factors to be weighed — if one element is missing, the offence is not made out at all, however bad the conduct looks.

A threat, by any means
The accused threatened another person. Section 351(1) says “by any means” and names no particular medium.
and
Of injury to person, reputation or property
Injury to the person threatened, or to the person or reputation of someone they are interested in — including the reputation of someone who has died (Explanation). “Injury” is any harm illegally caused, in body, mind, reputation or property (s. 2(14)).
and
With one of the intents the section names
To cause alarm to that person; or to make them do something they are not legally bound to do, or stop doing something they are legally entitled to do, as the way to avoid the threat being carried out.

Section 351(1) defines the offence; sub-sections (2) to (4) punish it. The Act’s own illustration: A threatens to burn B’s house to make B stop pursuing a civil suit — criminal intimidation.

Which sub-section? Two questions, asked separately

Question 1 — what was threatened?

A threat to cause:

death or grievous hurt
destroying property by fire
an offence punishable with death, life, or up to seven years
imputing unchastity to a woman

Yes351(3) — up to 7 years, or fine, or both

No351(2) — up to 2 years, or fine, or both

Question 2 — how was it made?

By an anonymous communication, or with precautions taken to conceal the name or abode of the person the threat comes from.

Yes351(4) as well — up to 2 years more

NoNothing is added

From section 351(2) to (4) as enacted. Sub-section (4) is punishable “in addition to the punishment provided for the offence under sub-section (1)”; sub-section (1) defines the offence, and (2) and (3) punish it.

Is BNS 351 bailable, cognizable and compoundable?

Arrest, bail and the court come from the First Schedule to the BNSS; compounding comes from section 359. What follows from each label is given with it.

Classification of BNS 351, row by row
Provision	Arrest	Bail	Compounding	Tried by
351(2)	Non-cognizable	Bailable	Compoundable	Any Magistrate
351(3)	Non-cognizable	Bailable	Compoundable	Magistrate of the first class
351(4)	Non-cognizable	Bailable	Not compoundable	Magistrate of the first class

What these labels mean

Arrest
Non-cognizable
The police may not investigate, and may not arrest, without an order from a Magistrate. In practice you go to the Magistrate rather than only to the police station, and an officer who says there is nothing they can do is describing the law correctly rather than refusing you.
Bail
Bailable
Bail is a right, not a request. The officer in charge or the court must release you on bail once you offer it — there is no discretion to refuse.
Compounding
Compoundable
May be compounded by the person intimidated. A compromise has the effect of an acquittal (s. 359(8)), and is not allowed where a previous conviction makes the accused liable to enhanced punishment (s. 359(7)).
Compounding
Not compoundable
The complainant cannot end the case by settling it. BNSS s. 359 lists every offence that may be compounded and this one is not on either list, so only the court can end the case.
Tried by
Any Magistrate
Triable by any Magistrate, which in practice means the Judicial Magistrate the case is allotted to locally.
Tried by
Magistrate of the first class
Tried by a Judicial Magistrate of the first class, whose sentencing power is capped, so the charge is expected to stay within that cap.

Read from the First Schedule to the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (printed page 216), and section 359 for compounding.

The three sub-sections: same labels, different consequences

The cards above give one compounding answer for the whole section. It holds for 351(2) and 351(3) only: BNSS s. 359 lists those two, and s. 359(9) allows nothing else — so an anonymous threat under 351(4) cannot be compounded.

BNS 351 sub-sections compared
Sub-section	Maximum	Tried by	Compoundable	Summary trial	Time to complain
351(2)	Up to 2 years, or fine, or both	Any Magistrate	Yes — by the person intimidated	Yes	3 years
351(3)	Up to 7 years, or fine, or both	Magistrate of the first class	Yes — by the person intimidated	Yes	No s. 514 bar
351(4)	Up to 2 years, in addition	Magistrate of the first class	No — on neither table	Not listed in s. 283(1)	Not stated here

First Schedule to the BNSS, printed page 216, as enacted by Parliament; State amendments are not covered. Compounding s. 359(1); summary trial s. 283(1)(v); time s. 514(2)(c). The 351(4) punishment is expressed as an addition, so no period is stated for it.

Punishment under BNS 351, against the offences around it

Imprisonment under section 351 may be of either description — rigorous or simple (BNS s. 4(c)). Under 351(2) and 351(3) a court may impose fine instead of imprisonment, or both; 351(4) mentions only the additional imprisonment. No sub-section sets a minimum. One mismatch is worth knowing: 351(3) carries up to seven years but is tried by a Magistrate of the first class, who may pass no more than three (BNSS s. 23(2)). A Magistrate who thinks a heavier sentence is deserved records that opinion and sends the case to the Chief Judicial Magistrate (s. 364). In a summary trial the ceiling is three months (s. 285(2)).

Maximum imprisonment: criminal intimidation and the offences next to it

BNS 351(3) — threat of death, grievous hurt and the restthis pageup to 7 years
BNS 308(2) — extortionup to 7 years
BNS 351(2) — criminal intimidationthis pageup to 2 years
BNS 351(4) — anonymous threatthis pageup to 2 years more
BNS 308(3) — putting in fear of injury to commit extortionup to 2 years
BNS 352 — insult to provoke a breach of the peaceup to 2 years
BNS 115(2) — voluntarily causing hurtup to 1 year

From the section text. The 351(4) bar is additional time on top of the punishment for criminal intimidation, not a stand-alone maximum. A maximum is a ceiling, not what a court awards.

What happens, and how long each part takes

Information at the police stationthe day you report it
The officer enters the substance in the station’s book and refers you to the Magistrate (BNSS s. 174(1)). This is not an FIR.
Complaint to the Magistratewithin 3 years for 351(2)
Oral or written. You and any witnesses present are examined on oath, and the accused must be given a chance to be heard before cognizance (ss. 223(1), 514(2)(c)).
From here it is not yours to control
Everything below happens on the investigating agency’s timetable and the court’s, not yours. You can follow it and you can be heard in it; you cannot set its pace.
Inquiry or investigation, if orderedas the Magistrate directs
The Magistrate may inquire, or order the police to investigate; the police still cannot arrest without a warrant (ss. 174(3), 225). The complaint is dismissed, with reasons, if there is no sufficient ground (s. 226).
Summons to the accusedafter the witness list is filed
351(2) is a summons-case; 351(3) is a warrant-case, where a warrant or a summons may issue. A written complaint’s copy goes with it (ss. 2(1)(x), (z), 227).
Trialno fixed period in the BNSS
351(2) and 351(3) may be tried summarily (s. 283(1)(v)). The case can end earlier by compounding, for those two sub-sections only (s. 359).

The time limits are the BNSS’s own. If the same facts also disclose a cognizable offence, the case is cognizable throughout and starts with an FIR instead (s. 174(4)).

Can the police register a case for a threat? What non-cognizable means here

Criminal intimidation is non-cognizable in every form, so section 174 of the BNSS, not section 173, governs what happens at the police station. The officer must record the substance of what you say and refer you to the Magistrate. That is the law working as written, not a refusal.

The position changes if the same facts disclose a cognizable offence. A threat used to make someone hand over money or property is extortion under BNS 308, and every extortion row in the First Schedule is cognizable (printed pages 207–208). Where one offence in a case is cognizable, the whole case is (s. 174(4)).

What the police may do with a report of criminal intimidation

Step	Allowed?	Where the Act says so
Record the substance of the information in the station’s book	Yes — they must	BNSS s. 174(1)
Refer the informant to the Magistrate	Yes — they must	s. 174(1)(i)
Send the Magistrate a fortnightly diary report of such cases	Yes — they must	s. 174(1)(ii)
Investigate on their own	No	s. 174(2)
Investigate once a Magistrate orders it	Yes, with a cognizable-case officer’s powers	s. 174(3)
Arrest without a warrant, even under such an order	No	ss. 35(2), 174(3)
Treat the case as cognizable if a cognizable offence is also disclosed	Yes	s. 174(4)

The Magistrate can also be approached directly by complaint, without going to the police first (BNSS ss. 2(1)(h), 210(1)(a)).

If you have been threatened: making the complaint

A complaint is any allegation, oral or in writing, made to a Magistrate so that they act (BNSS s. 2(1)(h)). The Magistrate examines you and any witnesses present on oath and records it (s. 223(1)), and may inquire, or direct the police to investigate, before deciding whether to proceed (s. 225).

Time matters for the basic offence. A complaint under 351(2) must be filed within three years of the offence, and the filing date is the one that counts (s. 514(2)(c) and Explanation); for an anonymous threat, time can run from the day the sender’s identity becomes known (s. 515(1)(c)). Section 514 sets no bar for 351(3).

Once summons issue, attend. In a case tried as a summons-case, which includes any summary trial, a complainant who does not appear may see the accused acquitted after thirty days’ time, unless an advocate appears or attendance is excused (ss. 279, 285(1)). Threats by phone or online are still section 351; the IT Act offences and online reporting are on the IT Act and cyber pages linked below.

If you have been accused: the procedure and your rights

Criminal intimidation is non-cognizable, so no one may be arrested for it except under a Magistrate’s warrant or order (BNSS s. 35(2)). It is bailable: a person arrested or brought before a court who offers bail must be released, and a person unable to give a bail bond within a week may be presumed indigent and discharged on a bond without surety (s. 478(1)).

On a complaint, the Magistrate may not take cognizance without giving the accused an opportunity of being heard (s. 223(1), first proviso). A summons comes with a copy of a written complaint (s. 227(3)), and the Magistrate may allow appearance through an advocate (s. 228).

A case under 351(2) or 351(3) may be tried summarily, where no sentence above three months can be passed (ss. 283(1)(v), 285(2)). Free legal aid is set out at the end of this page.

Official sources checked

The statutes, rules and regulator pages the statements on this page were checked against.

Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 — sections 2(14), 4, 115, 308, 351, 352 and 356
Read 13 September 2026. Section 351(1) to (4) quoted and summarised from the enacted text.
BNSS, 2023 — First Schedule, rows 351(2), 351(3) and 351(4); rows 308(2) to 308(7)
Printed page 216: all three 351 rows non-cognizable and bailable; 351(2) any Magistrate, 351(3) and 351(4) Magistrate of the first class. Printed pages 207–208: every extortion row cognizable.
BNSS, 2023 — sections 2, 23, 35, 174, 210, 223, 225, 226, 227, 228, 279, 283, 285, 359, 364, 478, 514 and 515
Non-cognizable information, complaints and cognizance, summons, summary trial, compounding, bail and limitation.
Ministry of Home Affairs — corresponding sections, IPC to BNS
IPC 503 → BNS 351(1); IPC 506 → 351(2), 351(3); IPC 507 → 351(4). Not marked as changed.

What to do next

A criminal matter is not something to work out from a page, and this one does not pretend otherwise. Whether you are complaining or answering a charge, the next step is a lawyer.

If you cannot pay for one, you do not have to

Free legal services are a legal entitlement, not charity. Under section 12 of the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987 they are available to anyone in custody, every woman and every child, members of a Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe, persons with disabilities, victims of trafficking or of a disaster or caste atrocity, industrial workers, and anyone whose income is below the limit their State sets — provided the legal services authority is satisfied there is a case to bring or defend (section 13).

NALSA — National Legal Services Authority
NALSA legal aid helpline (toll-free): 15100
Your District Legal Services Authority. Every district has one, at the district court, and it is the office that arranges a lawyer.

Not legal advice. This page explains what a provision says and how the procedure around it works, checked against the Act as in force on the date shown. It is not advice about a charge, a complaint or an arrest, and it cannot be: whether a provision fits a set of facts is the question a court decides, and the facts a page cannot see are usually the ones that matter. If you are facing a criminal matter, or deciding whether to start one, speak to an advocate.

No legal reviewer, deliberately. GetNyay is not a law firm and does not practise law. Nothing on this page is legal advice or a substitute for advice from an advocate on your own facts. Our tax and consumer pages carry a Chartered Accountant’s review credit; that credential does not extend to criminal law, so these pages carry none. We would rather show you the sources than a review that has not happened — every section number and classification here is cited to the Act or the Schedule it came from, with the date checked.

Last reviewed September 2026.