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IPC 1860REPEALED

Section 20-33

Definitions: Court, Public Servant, Movable Property, Wrongful Gain/Loss, Dishonestly, Fraudulently, Reason to Believe, Property in Possession of Wife/Clerk, Documents, Electronic Records, Valuable Securities, Will, Merchant Vessel

Replaced by: BNS 3

N/ACognizable: N/AN/A
THE STATUTE

Original Text

Section 22: The word 'movable property' is intended to include corporeal property of every description, except land and things attached to the earth or permanently fastened to anything which is attached to the earth. Section 23: 'Wrongful gain' is gain by unlawful means of property to which the person gaining is not legally entitled. 'Wrongful loss' is the loss by unlawful means of property to which the person losing it is legally entitled. Section 24: Whoever does anything with the intention of causing wrongful gain to one person or wrongful loss to another person, is said to do that thing 'dishonestly'. Section 25: A person is said to do a thing fraudulently if he does that thing with intent to defraud but not otherwise. Section 26: A person is said to have 'reason to believe' a thing, if he has sufficient cause to believe that thing but not otherwise.

Simplified

Sections 20–33 constitute the IPC's definitional engine — concepts that power hundreds of downstream provisions. Section 22 (movable property) determines the scope of theft, robbery, and dacoity — only movable property can be stolen; land cannot. Section 23 (wrongful gain/loss) and Section 24 (dishonestly) are the mental state definitions for all property offences. 'Dishonestly' requires the intent to cause wrongful gain or loss — it is the mens rea for theft, cheating, and criminal breach of trust. Section 25 (fraudulently) requires intent to defraud — a slightly different and narrower requirement than dishonesty. Section 26 (reason to believe) establishes a lower than actual knowledge threshold — 'sufficient cause to believe' not certainty. Section 30 (valuable security) covers negotiable instruments, share certificates, and bonds. Section 29A (electronic record, added 2000) extends all document-related offences to digital records — a crucial amendment for the digital age.

Legal Evolution

Section 29A was inserted by the Information Technology Act 2000, adding 'electronic record' alongside 'document' throughout the IPC. This single amendment extended forgery, fabrication of evidence, and all document-related offences to the digital domain without requiring separate legislation for each digital offence.

Landmark Precedents

R.K. Dalmia v. Delhi Administration (1962)

AIR 1962 SC 1821
RELEVANCE

Landmark interpretation of 'dishonestly' (Section 24) and 'fraudulently' (Section 25) in corporate fraud — mental states must co-exist with the actus reus at the time of the act.

Practical Scenarios

"A person who forges a digital signature on an electronic contract — Section 29A makes this 'forgery' under Section 463."
"Theft of a car (movable property) — covered by Section 378. Trespassing on someone's land — not theft (land is not movable property)."

Common Queries

Not directly under Section 378 (which requires 'movable property'). Theft of electricity is addressed by the Electricity Act 2003. However, courts have sometimes applied IPC theft provisions to intangibles by analogy.
'Dishonestly' (Section 24) requires intent to cause wrongful gain or loss. 'Fraudulently' (Section 25) requires intent to defraud — which implies deceit toward a person. Both are mental states, but 'fraudulently' is specifically tied to deceptive intent while 'dishonestly' focuses on the financial gain/loss.