Enticing or Taking Away a Married Woman Under the BNS (Section 84): IPC 498 Mapping (2026)

Explainer · New Criminal Code · BNS

Updated for 2026 · Claw Editorial

This is an old provision that is often confused with the cruelty offence that shares a similar number. It is not about dowry or cruelty. It punishes taking away, enticing, or detaining another man’s wife with the aim of illicit intercourse. If a complaint cites Section 84 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, this is the provision in play. This explainer sets out what Section 84 covers, what it carries, its bail status, and how it maps to the old IPC Section 498. Last verified October 2026.

01Section 84 in one answer

Section 84 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS) punishes a person who takes or entices away, or conceals or detains, a woman he knows or has reason to believe to be the wife of another man, with the intent that she may have illicit intercourse with any person. The BNS came into force on 1 July 2024 and replaced the Indian Penal Code.

The punishment is imprisonment of up to two years, or a fine, or both. This is the successor to IPC Section 498.

Section 84 punishes enticing, taking away, or detaining another man’s wife with the intent of illicit intercourse. It carries up to two years, or a fine, or both.

02What must be shown

The offence has several elements that must come together.

• the woman is the wife of another man;
• the accused knew, or had reason to believe, that she was married to another man;
• the accused took or enticed her away, or concealed or detained her; and
• the accused did so with the intent that she may have illicit intercourse with any person.

The criminal intent is the central element. The act of taking, enticing, or detaining must be done with that specific purpose. Illicit intercourse here means sexual relations outside a marriage or a recognised union.

03Punishment and classification

The punishment under Section 84 is imprisonment of up to two years, or a fine, or both.

The offence is non-cognizable and bailable, and it is triable by any Magistrate. Because it is non-cognizable, the police generally cannot register and investigate without a magistrate’s order, and a complaint route is often used.

04How it maps to IPC 498

Section 84 replaced IPC Section 498. The conduct and the two-year punishment carried over.

One point of wording is worth noting. IPC 498 expressly covered taking the woman away from her husband or from any person having care of her on his behalf. The BNS text as published is drafted slightly differently, so read the exact wording as it stands. For the full table, see our IPC to BNS section mapping.

05Not the same as cruelty (498A)

Section 84 is often confused with the old IPC Section 498A, the cruelty provision, because the numbers look alike. They are different offences.

• The old IPC 498 is now Section 84, about enticing or detaining another man’s wife.
• The old IPC 498A, cruelty to a wife by her husband or his relatives, is now Section 85 of the BNS.

So if your matter is about dowry harassment or cruelty within a marriage, the relevant provision is Section 85, not Section 84. For the detailed cruelty explainer see IPC 498A and its BNS equivalent. A related offence is bigamy under Section 82.

06Practical points

• Intent is everything. Without the intent that the woman have illicit intercourse, the conduct does not fit this section.
• Check which 498 you mean. Confirm whether the matter is about enticing a wife (Section 84) or cruelty (Section 85) before you rely on either.
• Date of the offence decides the code. The BNS applies to offences on or after 1 July 2024. Earlier cases stay under IPC 498.
• It is bailable. A person arrested under Section 84 alone has a right to bail.

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.

For a narrow, intent-based offence like this, the useful work is finding how courts have read the intent requirement and following the complaint through the magistrate court. Claw helps with both. You can search more than 30 crore judgments for orders under Section 84 and the old IPC 498, with results in under five seconds, and you can watch the cases, orders and hearings by party or advocate name across 9,102 courts, benches and forums. The coverage runs from the Supreme Court in 1950 and the High Courts in 1990. See how Claw handles case search across Indian courts.

Open a free Claw account to look up Section 84 orders and follow a live complaint by party or advocate name. Claw does not use your case documents to train its AI models. This explainer is general information, not legal advice, so check the current text of the section and take advice from counsel before you act.

08Sources and further reading

• India Code (official text of the BNS): indiacode.nic.in
• Ministry of Home Affairs (new criminal laws): mha.gov.in
• BNS Section 84 text: devgan.in
• Claw: clawlaw.in

Section numbers and punishments were checked against the published BNS text in October 2026. Always read the section as it stands on the day you act.

09Frequently asked questions