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Section 20: Act of Child Under Seven Years of Age

Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita • Chapter III: General Exceptions • Official Statutory Text & Legal Guide

Chapter III: General Exceptions
Juvenile Justice Board
Complete Defence
Non-Applicable
Formerly Sec 82 IPC
Section 19 All 358 Sections of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Section 21

Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 20

Section 20 establishes the absolute defense of infancy (Doli Incapax), providing that nothing is an offence which is done by a child under seven years of age, creating an irrebuttable statutory presumption of innocence.

  • Absolute Age Ceiling: Applies to any child who has not completed seven years of age at the time of the alleged act.
  • Irrebuttable Presumption: The law conclusively presumes that a child under seven lacks criminal capacity (mens rea); no evidence of precocious malice is admissible.
  • Complete Bar on Prosecution: No criminal FIR, charge sheet, or Juvenile Justice Board proceeding can be sustained against a child under seven.
Key Landmark Precedents:
  • Marsh v. Loader (1863) 14 CBNS 535: The landmark common law authority: an infant under the statutory age cannot be guilty of an offence; the presumption of incapacity is absolute and irrebuttable.
  • Hari Mohan v. State (2000): Affirmed that criminal law presumes complete incapacity in children under seven, barring all punitive proceedings.
Courtroom Practice & Strategic Litigation Guidance:

If a child under seven is named in an FIR or complaint for accident, hurt, or damage, produce the municipal birth certificate immediately under Section 20 BNS; the police have a mandatory duty to close the proceedings against the child.

Section 19 All 358 Sections of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Section 21