Bigamy Under the BNS (Section 82): IPC 494 Mapping (2026)

Explainer · Criminal Law · BNS

Updated for 2026 · Claw Editorial

Bigamy is an offence under Section 82 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS), the code that replaced the Indian Penal Code (IPC) on 1 July 2024. Section 82 carries forward Sections 494 and 495 of the IPC. A person who marries again while a husband or wife is living, where that second marriage is void because of the first, can be punished with imprisonment up to seven years and a fine. If the first marriage was concealed from the second spouse, the punishment rises to imprisonment up to ten years and a fine. This explainer sets out what the section covers, the exact old-to-new mapping, the punishment and classification, and what changed. Last verified October 2026.

01What Section 82 of the BNS covers

Section 82 of the BNS has two parts, matching the two old IPC sections.

Section 82(1): the basic offence

Section 82(1) punishes a person who, having a husband or wife living, marries again in any case in which the second marriage is void by reason of its taking place during the life of the first spouse. The core ingredients are: a valid and subsisting first marriage, a second marriage during the life of the first spouse, and the second marriage being void for that reason.

The section carries over the two well-known exceptions from the old law: where the first marriage has been declared void by a competent court, and where the first spouse has been continually absent and not heard of for the period the law sets, if the facts are disclosed to the second spouse.

Section 82(2): concealment of the first marriage

Section 82(2) deals with the more serious case, where the person commits the offence under sub-section (1) having concealed the fact of the former marriage from the person with whom the second marriage is contracted. The concealment makes the conduct worse and the punishment higher.

02The old IPC to new BNS mapping

Section 82 brings the two old bigamy sections together under one number.

So a person searching for "section 494 ipc in bns" is looking for Section 82 of the BNS. The offence and its exceptions are carried over, which is why older case law on bigamy still applies.

03Punishment and classification

The punishment depends on whether the first marriage was concealed.

• Section 82(1): imprisonment of either description up to seven years, and a fine.
• Section 82(2) (concealment): imprisonment of either description up to ten years, and a fine.

On classification, the basic offence under Section 82(1) is non-cognizable and bailable, and is triable by a Magistrate. Bigamy under Section 82(1) is generally treated as compoundable by the aggrieved spouse in the categories the law allows. A complaint is usually made by the aggrieved spouse or a close relative, so standing to complain matters in practice.

04What changed from the old law

For bigamy, the change is almost entirely renumbering. The old Sections 494 and 495 of the IPC become Section 82(1) and Section 82(2) of the BNS, with the offence, the exceptions and the punishments carried across. The substance of the law has not changed.

Bigamy continues to interact with personal law, because whether a second marriage is void depends on the law that governs the marriage. That is a separate question from the criminal offence. For the wider picture of how the codes changed, see how the BNS changed the IPC and the IPC to BNS section converter.

05Where Claw fits

Claw is an all-in-one legaltech platform for Indian advocates, law firms, and corporate legal teams, combining AI-based case search, an AI legal assistant (Legal GPT), case management, and compliance automation across all Indian courts and tribunals.

Bigamy cases under Section 82 of the BNS run in magistrate courts and often sit alongside matrimonial and maintenance matters. Claw lets you search and track cases, orders and judgments by section, party or advocate across 9,102 courts, benches and forums, with 30 crore+ judgments and results in under 5 seconds, so you can see how the section is being read and follow a live matter through its hearings. Claw does not use customer case documents to train AI models. Create a FREE Claw account to search and track cases under this section by party or advocate name. For the full picture, see case search across Indian courts.

06Sources and further reading

• Ministry of Home Affairs (new criminal laws): mha.gov.in
• India Code (official bare text of the BNS): indiacode.nic.in
• Text of BNS Section 82: devgan.in
• Claw: clawlaw.in

This explainer is general information, not legal advice. Always read the section as it stands on the day you act, and take advice from counsel on your facts.

07Frequently asked questions