It is 11 PM. A neighbour calls and says the police have come to your brother's house. You rush there. The officer says, "We have to take him for questioning under the new law." You stand at the door, phone in hand, and your stomach drops. You have heard the words BNSS on the news. You do not know what it means for your family. You only know that the rules have changed, and you have no time to read a law book.
This guide is written for that exact moment. The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS) replaced the old Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (CrPC) on 1 July 2024. Two parts of it touch ordinary people most: how an FIR is registered, and how an arrest is made. We explain both in plain words, with the section numbers you will see on the police paperwork.
What Actually Changed on 1 July 2024?
From 1 July 2024, three new criminal laws came into force together. The penal code (IPC) was replaced by the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). The Evidence Act was replaced by the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA). The procedure book, which decides how police, magistrates and trial courts work, is the BNSS, and that is the one this article is about.
If your case began before 1 July 2024, the old CrPC continues for that case. If the FIR is registered on or after 1 July 2024, the BNSS applies. So the section number on the FIR copy quietly tells you which law your matter falls under.
Most of the BNSS is a re-numbering of CrPC sections, with about a dozen real changes. The structure is the same: information to the police, investigation, arrest, bail, charge, trial, judgment, appeal. The headings have moved around but the bones of the system are intact. The drafters wanted continuity, not chaos.
For an ordinary reader, only a handful of changes truly matter, and they all sit in the early stages: FIR, preliminary inquiry, electronic complaints, the rules around arrest, and the right to a notice before arrest.
How Is an FIR Different Under BNSS?
The right to get an FIR registered for a cognizable offence is now in Section 173 BNSS (the old Section 154 CrPC). The basic duty is unchanged. If you walk into a police station and report a cognizable offence, the officer in charge must reduce it to writing, read it back to you, get your signature, and give you a free copy. That has not moved.
What is new is the language. Section 173 expressly says the FIR must be registered "irrespective of the area where the offence is committed". This is the statutory recognition of the zero FIR idea, which earlier rested on Supreme Court rulings such as Lalita Kumari v. State of U.P. (2014). The statute now does the work the case law was doing.
Section 173(1) also lets you give information by electronic communication. So a typed online complaint can become the seed of an FIR, provided you sign it on record within three days. The clause is the legal hook for what people loosely call an e-FIR.
Section 173(4) gives a new aggrieved-person remedy: if the police refuse to register an FIR even after the senior superintendent of police has been approached, the complainant can apply to the magistrate. We cover that route separately in our article on filing a magistrate complaint when an FIR is not registered.
Zero FIR and e-FIR: What They Mean For You
A zero FIR is an FIR registered at any police station, regardless of where the offence happened. The receiving station gives it FIR number "zero", records the basic facts, and transfers it to the station that has territorial jurisdiction. For victims of urgent crimes, especially women in transit or families away from home, it removes the cruel "go to the right thana first" reply. Section 173 BNSS now writes that practice into the statute.
An e-FIR is the electronic equivalent. You can send the information by email or through the state police portal. The police are required to take it on record. Within three days you must visit the station and sign it, otherwise it does not get treated as a registered FIR. The idea is to remove distance as a barrier, not to remove identification.
For sexual offences, offences against children, and offences against women, several states have laid down extra rules: women officer recording, videography, time-bound action. These continue alongside BNSS and are not weakened by the new code.
The New Preliminary Inquiry Power
The biggest change in the FIR chapter is Section 173(3) BNSS. For cognizable offences punishable with three years or more but less than seven years, the police, with the prior permission of an officer not below the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police, may either proceed to investigate or first conduct a preliminary inquiry, within fourteen days, to find out whether a prima facie case exists.
This is new. Earlier, under Lalita Kumari v. State of U.P., preliminary inquiry was a judge-made exception in narrow situations. Now it is in the statute, but only for that mid-band of offences. For very serious offences (over seven years), no preliminary inquiry is allowed. The police have to register and investigate.
For an ordinary complainant this matters because, in many cheating, criminal breach of trust, or matrimonial cruelty cases, the police can now legitimately do a short fact-check before opening an FIR. If you face delay, ask politely whether your case is under Section 173(3), in which case you are entitled to a written intimation of why your FIR is being held back.
Arrest Under BNSS: Section 35 in Plain Words
The arrest power is now in Section 35 BNSS. It carries forward the old Sections 41 and 41A CrPC together. The grounds on which the police can arrest without a warrant are the same: a cognizable offence committed in their presence, a reasonable suspicion of a serious cognizable offence, certain proclaimed offenders, and others listed in the section.
Two things are worth marking. First, for offences punishable with up to seven years of jail, the police are required to record reasons in writing before making an arrest. They must show that arrest is necessary to prevent further offence, ensure proper investigation, prevent destruction of evidence, prevent influencing of witnesses, or ensure presence in court. This was the rule that the Supreme Court laid down in Arnesh Kumar v. State of Bihar (2014). It now sits inside the statute.
Second, Section 35(7) BNSS adds a fresh safeguard. No arrest is to be made for an offence punishable with less than three years of imprisonment, where the person is infirm or above sixty years of age, without the prior permission of an officer of at least the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police.
The Section 35(7) Notice You Must Know
For offences punishable with up to seven years, before any arrest, the police are expected to issue a written notice asking the person to appear at the police station. This is the BNSS equivalent of the old Section 41A CrPC notice. If you appear and cooperate with the inquiry, you cannot be arrested merely because the FIR exists. The Supreme Court has repeatedly reminded police forces of this in Satender Kumar Antil v. CBI (2022) and earlier rulings.
If you are served such a notice, do not ignore it. Note the date, time and the officer's name. Keep a copy. Visit the station with one trusted family member and, ideally, a lawyer. If you are an ordinary witness or a relative, ask whether your statement is being recorded under Section 180 BNSS (witnesses) or whether you are an accused person. The two are very different.
If, despite your cooperation, you are arrested, your lawyer can rely on Section 35 read with Arnesh Kumar to question whether the reasons for arrest were recorded as required. Cases involving FIRs registered against you often start with confusion at this exact stage, and understanding your rights at the FIR stage is the first practical step before anyone talks about bail.
Your Rights the Moment You Are Arrested
Section 47 BNSS (the old Section 50 CrPC) says every person arrested without warrant must be told the grounds of arrest immediately, and informed of the right to bail in bailable offences. The Supreme Court in Pankaj Bansal v. Union of India (2023) made it clear that this means written grounds, served promptly. BNSS keeps that protection.
Section 48 BNSS preserves the duty to inform a friend or relative of the arrest. Section 53 BNSS continues the right to a medical examination at the time of, and during, custody. Sections 56 to 58 keep the twenty-four-hour rule: the arrested person must be produced before a magistrate within twenty-four hours of arrest, leaving aside travel time. The custody clock has not changed.
Section 187 BNSS (the old Section 167 CrPC) governs how long a magistrate can extend custody. The total ceiling is sixty or ninety days depending on the seriousness of the offence, after which default bail under Section 187(3) becomes available if no chargesheet is filed.
What Should I Actually Do Now?
- If a police officer comes home, stay calm. Ask, in writing, whether they are arresting your relative or only serving a Section 35(7) notice.
- Note down the officer's name, designation and police station. If possible, photograph any notice.
- If an FIR is being registered, ask for a free copy under Section 173 BNSS. Read it before you sign.
- If the police refuse the FIR, write to the Superintendent of Police under Section 173(4). Keep the receipt.
- If even the SP does not act, your next step is a complaint to the magistrate under Section 175(3) BNSS.
- If your relative is arrested, go to the station with one calm family member. Ask for the grounds of arrest in writing under Section 47 BNSS.
- Make sure a relative or friend has been informed under Section 48. If not, point this out politely.
- Insist on a medical check-up under Section 53. This is your protection against later allegations of mistreatment.
- Within twenty-four hours, the arrested person must be produced before the magistrate. Be present in court that day.
- For any offence punishable up to seven years, brief a lawyer about Arnesh Kumar and Satender Kumar Antil as the basis to argue against unnecessary arrest.
A Calmer Way to Read the New Law
The shift from CrPC to BNSS feels enormous when you stand at a police station for the first time. In day-to-day practice, the procedure is closer to the old code than headlines suggest. The duty to register an FIR, the safeguards before arrest, the twenty-four-hour rule, the right to be told why you are being arrested, the bail framework — all of it has carried over. Where there are real changes, they tend to widen rights rather than shrink them: zero FIR is now statutory, e-FIR is recognised, the Arnesh Kumar safeguard sits inside Section 35, and a senior officer's permission is needed before arresting infirm or elderly persons in small cases.
If you are reading this because someone in your family is in trouble tonight, the legal book is the second step. The first step is to keep your head, document everything, and reach a lawyer quickly. The Pinaka Legal team handles BNSS FIR and arrest matters in Delhi every week and we are reachable on the number at the top of this page.
Frequently Asked Questions
From which date did BNSS replace CrPC?
BNSS came into force on 1 July 2024. From that date, all new FIRs, arrests, investigations and trials follow BNSS rules. Older cases that began under the old CrPC continue under the old rules until they are over, but any fresh complaint after 1 July 2024 is registered under BNSS. The section numbers on your paperwork will tell you which law applies to your matter.
Is Section 173 BNSS the same as Section 154 CrPC?
Yes, Section 173 BNSS replaces Section 154 of the old CrPC. The duty to register an FIR for a cognizable offence is unchanged. What is new is that you can now lodge it irrespective of the place of the offence (zero FIR), and information can also be given by electronic communication (e-FIR), subject to signing within three days. The free copy of the FIR is still your right.
What is a preliminary inquiry under Section 173(3) BNSS?
It is a short fact-check the police can do before registering an FIR, but only for offences punishable with three to seven years of jail. With prior permission from a senior officer, the police can verify whether a prima facie case exists, within fourteen days. They cannot use this for serious offences punishable with more than seven years. For those, the FIR has to be registered straight away.
Can the police arrest me without a warrant under BNSS?
Yes, but only in the situations listed in Section 35 BNSS. For most offences punishable with up to seven years, the police must record reasons in writing before arrest, and they must first issue a written notice under Section 35(7) and arrest you only if you do not cooperate. For very small cases involving infirm or above-sixty-year-old persons, prior permission of a Deputy SP is required.
What is a Section 35(7) BNSS notice?
A Section 35(7) notice is the BNSS version of the old 41A CrPC notice. The police give you a written notice asking you to appear at the police station. If you appear and cooperate, you cannot be arrested only because the offence is registered. The Supreme Court in Arnesh Kumar and Satender Kumar Antil has repeatedly stressed that this notice is not optional.
Can I file a zero FIR at any police station?
Yes. Under Section 173 BNSS, an FIR for a cognizable offence has to be registered "irrespective of the area where the offence is committed." So if you reach a police station that is not the one with jurisdiction, the officer in charge cannot send you away. They must register the zero FIR and forward it to the right station for investigation.
What if the police refuse to register my FIR?
You have two clear remedies under BNSS. First, send a written complaint to the Superintendent of Police under Section 173(4). Second, if the SP also fails to act, you can move a magistrate under Section 175(3) BNSS for a direction to register and investigate the FIR. Both routes are governed by the new code and require simple, written representations.
What is the time limit for producing an arrested person before a magistrate?
Twenty-four hours, excluding travel time. Section 58 BNSS preserves the constitutional rule from Article 22(2). If your relative has been arrested, ask for the time of arrest. The court production must happen within twenty-four hours. If it does not, the detention itself becomes illegal and a strong ground for release.
Does BNSS allow arrest of senior citizens for small offences?
Section 35(7) BNSS specifically protects persons who are infirm or above sixty years of age. For an offence punishable with less than three years, no arrest can be made without prior permission of an officer at least of the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police. This is a new and explicit safeguard that did not exist in the old Section 41 CrPC.
Where can I get help on BNSS FIR and arrest matters in Delhi?
You can speak to a criminal lawyer at Pinaka Legal. Our team in Delhi advises families on BNSS FIR and arrest issues, including zero FIR, e-FIR, Section 35(7) notices, anticipatory bail and quashing. The first consultation is free and confidential. The phone number and email are at the top and bottom of this page.
For more articles on Indian law, visit the Pinaka Legal Blog.