BNS Section 330: Lurking House-Trespass and House-Breaking, the Definitions (IPC 443 and 445 Mapping) (2026)

Explainer · Criminal Law · BNS

Updated for 2026 · Claw Editorial

Section 330 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) defines two forms of aggravated trespass: lurking house-trespass and house-breaking. It replaced Sections 443 and 445 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) from 1 July 2024. Section 330 is a definitions section. It tells you when a house-trespass becomes a lurking house-trespass or a house-breaking, but it does not set a punishment on its own. The punishment for these offences is set in the sections that follow. This explainer sets out what Section 330 covers, how it maps to the old law, and what changed. Last verified October 2026.

01Why the section number matters now

Since 1 July 2024 the Indian Penal Code (IPC) is replaced by the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS). The trespass provisions moved. The definitions of lurking house-trespass and house-breaking, which lawyers knew as Sections 443 and 445 of the IPC, are now brought together in Section 330 of the BNS.

This matters in practice. An FIR for an offence committed on or after 1 July 2024 reads against the BNS numbers. An older matter keeps its IPC numbers, because the law that applies is the law on the date of the offence. So for some years both sets of numbers will appear in live files, and you need to read each correctly.

02What Section 330 covers

Section 330 of the BNS sits in the chapter on offences against property, in the group on criminal trespass. It defines the two aggravated forms of house-trespass.

• Lurking house-trespass: house-trespass committed by a person who takes precautions to conceal the trespass from someone who has a right to exclude or eject the trespasser from the building, tent or vessel.
• House-breaking: house-trespass where the offender enters, or leaves after committing an offence, by one of six listed ways, such as a passage made for the trespass, climbing over a wall, opening a lock, using criminal force or threats, or using a fastened passage the offender had unfastened.

03Lurking house-trespass and house-breaking

The two definitions turn on how the trespasser behaved.

• Lurking house-trespass adds the element of concealment: the trespasser takes active steps to hide the entry from a person entitled to keep them out.
• House-breaking adds the element of a forced or improper mode of getting in or out. The six listed ways include using a passage not meant for human entry, climbing over or through a wall or building, opening a shut fastening, and using criminal force, assault or threats.

An outbuilding that has an immediate internal connection with the house is treated as part of the house. The section also carries illustrations, such as making a hole in a wall to reach in, or entering through a window, which show when each mode is met.

04Old to new: IPC 443 and 445 to BNS 330

Section 330 of the BNS brings together old Sections 443 and 445 of the IPC.

The night-time forms, lurking house-trespass by night and house-breaking by night, and the various punishments, sit in the neighbouring sections, just as they did under the IPC.

05Where the punishment sits

Section 330 does not punish anything by itself. It is a definitions section. Once a trespass is shown to be a lurking house-trespass or a house-breaking, the court turns to the following sections of the BNS for the sentence.

In broad terms, and as under the old IPC, the punishment rises with the gravity: it is heavier for offences committed by night, and heavier again where the trespass or breaking is to commit a further offence.

06What changed from the old law

For these definitions, the change is mainly the numbering and the way the provisions are grouped. The tests for lurking house-trespass and house-breaking are carried over from Sections 443 and 445 of the IPC, so older judgments on those sections still guide how Section 330 is read.

Because the modes of entry and the concealment test are unchanged, the practical effect for investigation and charge is close to the old law, with the labels now carried in a single, consolidated section.

07Where 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.

House-breaking and lurking-trespass charges seldom appear alone; they move through trial courts and appeals bundled with other counts. Claw lets you follow that journey by searching case records, orders and hearing dates across 9,102 courts, benches and forums. Its library of more than 30 crore judgments carries High Court decisions from 1990 and Supreme Court decisions from 1950, and a query generally returns in under five seconds. So you can see how courts applied the old Sections 443 and 445 and now Section 330, or keep a live matter in view by party or advocate name.

The case files you upload are not used to train Claw's AI models. Open a free Claw account to track a Section 330 matter by party or advocate name and pull the older trespass rulings that shape it. To widen the search across the law, see case search across Indian courts.

08Sources and further reading

• India Code (official text of the BNS, 2023): indiacode.nic.in
• PRS Legislative Research (BNS overview and IPC comparison): prsindia.org
• Section 330, BNS (bare text): devgan.in
• Claw: clawlaw.in

This explainer is general information, not legal advice. The law changes through amendments and judgments, so check the current text and take advice from counsel before you act.

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