Indian Penal Code, 1860
IPC Section 498A in BNS
Husband or relative of husband subjecting a woman to cruelty. Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (Husband or relative of husband subjecting a woman to cruelty) corresponds to Section 85 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.
Verify before you rely on this. Renumbering under the 2023 codes is not a clean one-to-one exercise — provisions were merged, split and reworded. Always check the printed bare act.
Where this sits in the exam
This provision is examined under IPC & Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, worth 8 of the 100 marks in AIBE XXII. The paper permits bare acts but bans notes, so what matters is finding it quickly, not reciting the number.
Questions that turn on this section
Cruelty by a husband or his relative towards a woman is punishable under:
Answer & explanation
Section 85 BNS
BNS Section 85 corresponds to IPC Section 498A, with the definition of cruelty in Section 86. Punishment is imprisonment up to three years and fine.
Sections either side of it
How the neighbouring provisions of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 were renumbered:
| IPC | Provision | BNS |
|---|---|---|
| 496 | Marriage ceremony fraudulently gone through without lawful marriage | 83 |
| 497 | Adultery | omitted |
| 498 | Enticing or taking away or detaining with criminal intent a married woman | 84 |
| 509 | Word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman | 79 |
| 359 | Kidnapping | 135 |
| 360 | Kidnapping from India | 136 |
Practise it
Cutoff has AIBE XXII questions on this area, each cited to both codes with a line telling you where to find it in the bare act. Ten questions per subject are free, no account needed.
Practise free Full IPC→BNS table