BNS Section 213: Refusing Oath or Affirmation When Duly Required by a Public Servant (IPC 178 Mapping) (2026)
What Section 213 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) covers: refusing to take an oath or make an affirmation when a public servant duly requires it, how it maps to Section 178 of the old IPC, the punishment, and the classification. Last verified October 2026.
Explainer · Criminal Law · BNS
Section 213 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) punishes a person who refuses to take an oath or make an affirmation to state the truth when a public servant duly requires it. It is the new home of the offence that lawyers knew as Section 178 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The punishment is simple imprisonment up to six months, or a fine up to five thousand rupees, or both. If you searched for "BNS Section 213" expecting something else, remember that the BNS renumbered the old code, so the number alone can mislead. This explainer sets out what Section 213 covers, how it differs from refusing to answer, how it maps to the old law, and the punishment. Last verified October 2026.
- Section: BNS Section 213 punishes refusing to take an oath or make an affirmation when a public servant duly requires it.
- Old section: it replaced Section 178 of the IPC, in force from 1 July 2024.
- Scope: it strikes at refusing the oath itself, not at refusing to answer a question, which is a separate offence.
- Punishment: simple imprisonment up to 6 months, or a fine up to Rs 5,000, or both. Non-cognizable and bailable.
01Why the number trips people up
The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS) replaced the Indian Penal Code (IPC) from 1 July 2024 and renumbered almost every offence. So the IPC number you remember rarely points to the same provision in the BNS.
Section 213 is one such case. In the BNS it sits in the chapter on contempts of the lawful authority of public servants, and more narrowly in the group about false or withheld evidence before a public servant. It punishes a person who refuses to be put on oath or affirmation at all. Reading the new number correctly matters, because a charge for conduct on or after 1 July 2024 is drawn under the BNS and cites Section 213, not the old IPC number.
02What Section 213 covers
Section 213 of the BNS punishes a person who refuses to bind himself by an oath or affirmation to state the truth, when a public servant who is legally competent to require it duly requires him to do so.
This is the offence that comes before the giving of any evidence. The public servant, such as a court or an authority recording a statement, asks the person to take an oath or make an affirmation. Refusing that step, when it is lawfully required, is itself the offence.
Refusing the oath is not the same as refusing to answer
Section 213 is about refusing to be bound by the oath or affirmation itself. Refusing to answer a question, or refusing to sign a statement, after being lawfully required to do so, are separate offences in the same group. Identify which step the person refused, because the charge follows the step.
03Key ingredients
To bring a case under Section 213, the prosecution must show:
- A competent public servant: a public servant legally competent to administer or require an oath or affirmation;
- A due requirement: that public servant duly required the person to bind himself by an oath or affirmation to state the truth;
- Refusal: the person refused to do so.
The requirement must be a lawful one. If the public servant had no power to require the oath, or did not duly require it, the refusal is not an offence under this section.
04Old to new: IPC 178 to BNS 213
Section 178 of the IPC is now Section 213 of the BNS. The offence is carried over, with the fine stated in a current figure.
| Point | Old law (IPC) | New law (BNS) |
|---|---|---|
| Section number | Section 178 | Section 213 |
| Offence | Refusing oath or affirmation when duly required | Same offence |
| Punishment | Up to 6 months, or fine, or both | Up to 6 months, or fine up to Rs 5,000, or both |
Because the offence is carried forward, older judgments on Section 178 of the IPC continue to guide how Section 213 is read.
05Punishment and classification
The punishment under Section 213 is simple imprisonment for a term up to six months, or a fine up to five thousand rupees, or both.
On classification, the offence under Section 213 is:
- Non-cognizable: the police generally need the order of a Magistrate to investigate.
- Bailable: bail is a matter of right, subject to conditions.
- Triable by the court in which the offence is committed, subject to the special procedure for contempts committed before a court. If it is not committed before a court, it is triable by any Magistrate.
Why the trial forum is special
When the refusal happens inside a court, the court itself can act on it under the special procedure for such contempts, rather than starting a fresh prosecution elsewhere. Where the refusal is before another public servant, the ordinary route before a Magistrate applies.
06What changed from the old law
For this offence, the change is mostly the number and the fine figure, now stated as five thousand rupees. The conduct, the due-requirement element, and the punishment are carried over from Section 178 of the IPC, so the settled case law continues to apply.
The practical point is the transition. A charge for conduct on or after 1 July 2024 reads Section 213 of the BNS, while an older matter keeps its IPC 178 tag, because the law that applies is the law on the date of the offence.
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.
A refusal to take the oath comes up inside a live proceeding, so counsel need to see how courts and authorities have treated it, read alongside non-attendance offences in the same chapter. Claw carries more than 30 crore judgments and answers a search in under 5 seconds, with its record reaching back to the Supreme Court of 1950 and the High Courts of 1990. You can surface how a court has handled a refused oath, or follow a pending matter through its orders and hearings across the 9,102 courts, benches and forums Claw tracks.
Claw does not use customer case documents to train its AI models. Start a free Claw account to find a Section 213 matter by party or by the advocate who appeared, and to follow it as it is listed. To widen the search to all of decided law, 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 213, 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.
09Frequently asked questions
What does BNS Section 213 deal with?
Section 213 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 punishes a person who refuses to bind himself by an oath or affirmation to state the truth when a public servant legally competent to require it duly requires him to do so.
Which IPC section is BNS 213?
It corresponds to Section 178 of the old Indian Penal Code. The offence is carried over, with the fine now stated as up to five thousand rupees.
What is the punishment under BNS Section 213?
Simple imprisonment for a term up to six months, or a fine up to five thousand rupees, or both.
Is refusing to answer a question the same offence?
No. Section 213 is about refusing the oath or affirmation itself. Refusing to answer a question, or to sign a statement, after being lawfully required to do so, are separate offences in the same group.
Is the offence under Section 213 cognizable?
No. It is non-cognizable and bailable. Where the refusal is before a court, the court can act under the special procedure for such contempts; otherwise it is triable by any Magistrate.
Can I track a case under Section 213 in Claw?
Yes. You can pull a Section 213 matter by party or advocate and keep its orders and hearings in sight across the 9,102 courts, benches and forums Claw follows, with more than 30 crore judgments behind each search and a result in under 5 seconds. It researches and tracks the matter but does not give legal advice.