BNS Section 63 — Rape
CHAPTER V OF OFFENCES AGAINST WOMAN AND CHILD
Criminal
Summary
A man commits rape if he does any of the following acts: (a) penetrates his penis, to any extent, into a woman's vagina, mouth, urethra, or anus, or makes her do this with him or any other person; (b) inserts any object or any part of his body other than the penis, to any extent, into a woman's vagina, urethra, or anus, or makes her do this with him or any other person; (c) manipulates any part of a woman's body so as to cause penetration into her vagina, urethra, anus, or any part of her body, or makes her do this with him or any other person; or (d) applies his mouth to a woman's vagina, anus, or urethra, or makes her do this with him or any other person.
The acts described in clauses (a), (b), (c), and (d) amount to rape only if they happen under any of the following seven circumstances: (i) against the woman's will; (ii) without her consent; (iii) with her consent, when that consent was obtained by putting her or any person she is interested in, in fear of death or hurt; (iv) with her consent, when the man knows he is not her husband and that she consents because she believes he is another man to whom she is or believes herself to be lawfully married; (v) with her consent, when at the time of giving consent, because of unsoundness of mind, intoxication, or the administration by him personally or through another of any stupefying or unwholesome substance, she is unable to understand the nature and consequences of what she is consenting to; (vi) with or without her consent, when she is under eighteen years of age; or (vii) when she is unable to communicate consent.
Explanation 1 states that for this section, the term vagina also includes labia majora.
Explanation 2 states that consent means an unequivocal voluntary agreement, where the woman, by words, gestures, or any form of verbal or non-verbal communication, communicates willingness to participate in the specific sexual act. It further provides that a woman who does not physically resist the act of penetration shall not, by that fact alone, be regarded as consenting to the sexual activity.
Exception 1 states that a medical procedure or intervention shall not constitute rape. Exception 2 states that sexual intercourse or sexual acts by a man with his own wife, where the wife is not under eighteen years of age, is not rape.
Official Text
A man is said to commit “rape” if he—
(a) penetrates his penis, to any extent, into the vagina, mouth, urethra or anus of a woman or makes her to do so with him or any other person; or
(b) inserts, to any extent, any object or a part of the body, not being the penis, into the vagina, the urethra or anus of a woman or makes her to do so with him or any other person; or
(c) manipulates any part of the body of a woman so as to cause penetration into the vagina, urethra, anus or any part of body of such woman or makes her to do so with him or any other person; or
(d) applies his mouth to the vagina, anus, urethra of a woman or makes her to do so with him or any other person, under the circumstances falling under any of the following seven descriptions:—
(i) against her will;
(ii) without her consent;
(iii) with her consent, when her consent has been obtained by putting her or any person in whom she is interested, in fear of death or of hurt;
(iv) with her consent, when the man knows that he is not her husband and that her consent is given because she believes that he is another man to whom she is or believes herself to be lawfully married;
(v) with her consent when, at the time of giving such consent, by reason of unsoundness of mind or intoxication or the administration by him personally or through another of any stupefying or unwholesome substance, she is unable to understand the nature and consequences of that to which she gives consent;
(vi) with or without her consent, when she is under eighteen years of age;
(vii) when she is unable to communicate consent.
Explanation 1.—For the purposes of this section, “vagina” shall also include labia majora.
Explanation 2.—Consent means an unequivocal voluntary agreement when the woman by words, gestures or any form of verbal or non-verbal communication, communicates willingness to participate in the specific sexual act:
Provided that a woman who does not physically resist to the act of penetration shall not by the reason only of that fact, be regarded as consenting to the sexual activity. Exception 1.—A medical procedure or intervention shall not constitute rape. Exception 2.—Sexual intercourse or sexual acts by a man with his own wife, the wife not being under eighteen years of age, is not rape.
Related Provisions
rape
Related Judgments
- SC (2025) Vol.3 p.1309 — Supreme Court of India (2025)
- SC (2025) Vol.11 p.291 — Supreme Court of India (2025)
- SC (2025) Vol.6 p.280 — Supreme Court of India (2025)
- SC (2025) Vol.3 p.1531 — Supreme Court of India (2025)
- SC (2024) Vol.8 p.670 — Supreme Court of India (2024)
- SC (2024) Vol.6 p.129 — Supreme Court of India (2024)
- SC (2025) Vol.4 p.2730 — Supreme Court of India (2025)
- SC (2025) Vol.7 p.105 — Supreme Court of India (2025)