Dispersal of an Unlawful Assembly Under the BNSS (Section 148): CrPC 129 Mapping (2026)

Explainer · New Criminal Laws · BNSS

Updated for 2026 · Claw Editorial

A crowd gathers and will not leave. Tempers rise, and a riot looks close. The State needs a lawful way to break up the crowd before it turns violent, and a clear rule on who can order it and how much force is allowed. That power is now in Section 148 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), which replaced Section 129 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) from 1 July 2024. This explainer sets out what the section does, how it maps to the old law, and the one change worth noting. Last verified October 2026.

01The problem this power addresses

Public order sometimes needs a fast, on the spot decision. If an unlawful assembly will not break up, the officer present must be able to act, but within clear limits so the power is not misused.

Section 148 answers three practical questions:

• Who can order a crowd to disperse.
• When force may be used, and how much.
• Who else can be called to help.

It is an executive power to restore order. It is not a punishment for being in the crowd, which is a separate matter under the penal code.

02What Section 148 BNSS is

Section 148 of the BNSS is the power to disperse an assembly by the use of civil force. An Executive Magistrate, an officer in charge of a police station, or, in that officer’s absence, a police officer not below the rank of sub-inspector, may command an unlawful assembly, or any assembly of five or more people likely to disturb the public peace, to disperse. Once commanded, the members are bound to leave.

If the assembly does not disperse, or behaves in a way that shows it has decided not to, the Magistrate or officer may proceed to disperse it by force, and may arrest and confine members so they can be dealt with under the law. This is a procedure provision, so Section 148 itself does not create an offence and carries no punishment of its own.

03Old to new: CrPC 129 becomes BNSS 148

The power corresponds directly to the old CrPC 129, and the connected sections have moved with it.

The main text of the dispersal power is nearly identical between the two codes. For the related substantive offence, see unlawful assembly under Section 189 BNS.

04How the power works

The sequence is simple and is meant to be the least force needed.

• Command to disperse. The Magistrate or officer orders the assembly to break up. The members then have a legal duty to leave.
• Use of force on refusal. If the assembly does not disperse, or shows a clear intent not to, the officer may use civil force to break it up.
• Help from the public. The officer may require persons, other than armed forces personnel, to help in dispersing the assembly.
• Arrest and confinement. Members can be arrested and confined so that they can be dealt with under the law.

If civil force is not enough, Section 149 allows the use of the armed forces to disperse the assembly, and Section 150 covers an armed force officer acting when no Executive Magistrate can be reached.

05What changed under the BNSS

The substance of the power is carried over with little change. The point commentators flag is small but real: in the clause that lets an officer require members of the public to help, the old word "male" has been removed. So the power to require assistance is no longer limited to men.

Beyond that, the wording tracks the old Section 129 closely. Some secondary websites attach classification tables to this section, but those labels are for offences, and Section 148 is a power, not an offence, so they should not be relied on.

06Limits on the use of force

The power is strong, so it is read with care.

• Least force needed. Force is a last step, used only if the assembly refuses to disperse or shows it will not.
• Lawful command first. The command to disperse must come from an officer the section names, acting in that capacity.
• Accountability. The protection for acts done under these sections applies only to acts done in good faith under the power, not to excess.

For the related public order tools, see prohibitory orders under Section 163 BNSS and preventive arrest under Section 170 BNSS.

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.

When the use of this power is questioned, the work is to find how courts have judged a dispersal and the force that went with it. Claw is suited to that. It searches more than 30 crore judgments and returns them in under five seconds, with the Supreme Court covered from 1950 and the High Courts from 1990, so you can read how benches have treated Section 148 of the BNSS and the old Section 129 of the CrPC. It also follows the cases, orders and hearings tied to such an incident across 9,102 courts, benches and forums, by party or advocate name. Claw does not use your case documents to train its AI models.

Sign up for a free Claw account to research dispersal orders and track a connected matter. To follow matters across courts, see how to track criminal case hearings and the case search hub.

08Sources and further reading

• India Code (official text of the BNSS, 2023): indiacode.nic.in
• Ministry of Home Affairs (new criminal laws): mha.gov.in
• Claw: clawlaw.in

This explainer is general information, not legal advice. Read the current text of Section 148 and the connected sections, and take advice from counsel before relying on it in a case.

09Frequently asked questions