Section 188 BNS: Unlawfully Taking Coining Instrument from Mint

Section 188 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 protects the security of lawfully established mints in India. It criminalises taking a coining tool or instrument out of such a mint without lawful authority.

Bare Act Text of Section 188 BNS

Meaning and Scope of Section 188 BNS

The section is directed at unauthorised removal of tools or instruments used for coining from a mint that is lawfully established in India. The protected interest is the integrity and security of the minting process and the equipment used to produce coin.

The offence is complete when a coining tool or instrument is taken out of the mint without lawful authority. The text does not require proof that the instrument was subsequently used to counterfeit coin or commit another offence.

Essential Ingredients of the Offence

For Section 188 to apply, the following statutory elements should be established:

1. There is a mint lawfully established in India.
2. The item concerned is a coining tool or instrument.
3. The accused takes that tool or instrument out of the mint.
4. The removal is without lawful authority.

Meaning of "Without Lawful Authority"

The section expressly requires absence of lawful authority. Accordingly, authorised removal in accordance with law, official duty or a valid permission would not satisfy this element. Whether authority existed must be determined from the applicable rules, permissions, duties and evidence in the particular case.

Coining Tool or Instrument

The statutory expression is "coining tool or instrument". In context, it covers equipment or instruments connected with the minting of coin. The particular item alleged to have been removed must therefore be shown to fall within that statutory description.

Punishment and Procedural Classification

A person convicted under Section 188 BNS may be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term extending up to seven years and is also liable to fine.

The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 came into force on 1 July 2024. Section 188 is the final provision in Chapter X, which deals with offences relating to coin, currency-notes, bank-notes and Government stamps.

Corresponding Provision Under the Indian Penal Code

Section 188 BNS substantially corresponds to Section 245 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, which was titled "Unlawfully taking coining instrument from mint". For conduct occurring before commencement of the BNS, the applicable provision may depend on the date of the alleged offence and the relevant saving provisions.

Related BNS Sections

Section 188 is closely connected with the preceding provisions concerning coinage, Government stamps and mint-related misconduct.

• Section 181 - Making or possessing instruments or materials for forging or counterfeiting coin, Government stamp, currency-notes or bank-notes
• Section 182 - Making or using documents resembling currency-notes or bank-notes
• Section 183 - Effacing writing from substance bearing Government stamp, or removing from document a stamp used for it
• Section 184 - Using Government stamp known to have been before used
• Section 185 - Erasure of mark denoting that stamp has been used
• Section 186 - Prohibition of fictitious stamps
• Section 187 - Person employed in mint causing coin to be of different weight or composition from that fixed by law
• Section 189 - Unlawful assembly

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