The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (CrPc)
320. Compounding of offences.
(1) The offences punishable under the sections of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860) specified in the first two columns of the Table next following may be compounded by the persons mentioned in the third column of that Table.
| Offence | Section of the Indian Penal Code Applicable | Person by whom offence may be compounded. |
| 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Uttering wards, etc., with deliberate intent to wound the religious feeling of any person | 298 | The person whose religious feelings are intended to be wounded |
| Causing Hurt. | 323, 334 | The person to whom the hurt is caused. . |
| Wrongfully restraining or confining any person. | 341, 342 | The person restrained or confined. |
| Assault or use of Criminal force | 352, 355, 358 | The person assaulted or to whom criminal force is used. |
| Mischief, when the only loss or damage caused is loss or damage to a private person. | 426, 427 | The Person to whom loss or damage is caused. |
| Criminal trespass. | 447 | The Person in possession of property trespassed upon. |
| House trespass | 448 | Ditto |
| Criminal breach of contract of service | 491 | The person with whom the offender has contracted |
| Adultery. | 497 | The husband of the woman |
| Enticing or taking away or detaining with criminal intent a married woman | 498 | Ditto. |
| 1[Defamation, except such case as are specified against section 500 of the Indian Penal Code in column 1 of the table under sub section (2).] | 500 | The person defamed. |
| Printing or engraving matter, knowing it to be defamatory. | 501 | Ditto. |
| Sale of printed or engraved substance containing defamatory matter, knowing it to contain such matter. | 502 | Ditto. |
| Insult intended to provoke a breach of the peace. | 504 | The person insulted. |
| Criminal intimidation except when the offence is punishable with imprisonment for seven years. | 506 | The person intimidated |
| Act caused by making a person believe that he will be an object of divine displeasure. | 508 | The person against whom the offence was committed. |
1. Subs. by Act 45 of 1978, sec. 25, for “Defamation (w.e.f. 18-12-1978)”
(2) The offences punishable under the section of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860) specified in the first two columns of the table next following may, with the permission of the court before which any prosecution for such offence is pending, be compounded by the persons mentioned in the third column of that table.
TABLE
| Offence | Section of the Indian Penal Code applicable | Person by whom offence may be compounded |
| 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 2[********] | ||
| Voluntarily causing grievous hurt. | 325 | 3[The person to whom hurt is caused] |
| Voluntarily causing grievous hurt on grave and sudden provocation. | 335 | Ditto. |
| Causing hurt by doing an act so rashly and negligently as to endanger human life or the personal safety of others. | 337 | Ditto. |
| Causing grievous hurt by doing an act so rashly and negligently as to endanger human life or the personal safety of others. | 338 | Ditto. |
| Wrongfully confining a person for three days or more. | 343 | The person confined. |
| Wrongfully confining for ten or more days. | 344 | Ditto. |
| Assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty. | 354 | The woman assaulted to whom the criminal force was used. |
| Assault or criminal force in attempting wrongfully to confine a person. | 357 | The person assaulted to whom the force was used. |
| Theft, where the value of property stolen does not exceed 4[two thousand rupees]. | 379 | The owner of the property stolen. |
| Theft by clerk or servant of property in possession of master, where the value of the property stolen does not exceed 4[two thousand rupees]. | 381 | Ditto |
| Dishonest misappropriation of property. | 403 | The owner of the property misappropriated. |
| Criminal breach of trust, where the value of the property does not exceed 4[two thousand rupees]. | 406 | The owner of the property in respect of which the breach of trust has been committed. |
| Criminal breach of trust by a carrier, wharfinger, etc. value of property does not exceed 4[two thousand rupees]. | 407 | Ditto |
| Criminal breach of trust by a clerk or servant, where the value of the property does not exceed 4[two thousand rupees]. | 408 | Ditto. |
| Dishonestly receiving stolen property, knowing it to be stolen, when the value of the stolen property does not exceed 4[two thousand rupees]. | 411 | The owner of the property stolen. |
| Assisting in the concealment or disposal of stolen property, knowing it to be stolen, where the value of the stolen property does not exceed 4[two thousand rupees]. | 414 | The owner of the property stolen. |
| Cheating. | 417 | The person cheated. |
| Cheating a person whose interest the offender was bound. Either by law or by legal contract, to protect. | 418 | Ditto. |
| Cheating by personation: | 419 | Ditto. |
| Cheating and dishonestly including delivery of property or the making, alteration or destruction of a valuable security. | 420 | Ditto. |
| Fraudulent removal or concealment of property, etc. to prevent distribution among creditors. | 421 | The creditors who are affected thereby. |
| Fraudulently preventing from being made available for his creditors a debit or demand due to the offender. | 422 | Ditto. |
| Fraudulent execution of deed of transfer containing false statement of consideration. | 423 | The person affected thereby. |
| Fraudulent removal or concealment of property. | 424 | Ditto. |
| Mischief by killing or maiming animal of the value of ten rupees or up wards. | 428 | The owner of the animal. |
| Mischief by killing or maiming cattle, etc. of any value or of any other animal of the value of fifty rupees or up wards. | 429 | The owner of the cattle or animal. |
| Mischief by injury to work of irrigation by wrongfully diverting water when the only loss or damage caused is loss or damage to a private person. | 430 | The person to whom the loss or damage is caused. |
| House-trespass to commit an offence (other than theft) punishable with imprisonment. | 451 | The person in possession of the house-trespassed upon. |
| Counterfeiting a trade or property mark used by another. | 483 | The person whose trade or property mark is counterfeited. |
| Knowingly selling or exposing or possessing for sale or for manufacturing purpose. Good marked with a counterfeited property mark. | 486 | Ditto. |
| Marrying again during the lifetime of a husband or wife. | 494 | The husband or wife of the person so marrying. |
| Defamation against the President or the Vice-President or the Governor of a State or the Administrator of a Union territory or a Minister in respect of his conduct in the discharge of his public functions when instituted upon a complaint made by the public prosecutor. | 500 | The person defamed. |
| Uttering wards or sounds or making gestures or exhibiting any object intending to insult the modesty of a woman or intruding upon the privacy of a woman. | 509 | The woman whom it was intended to insult or whose privacy was intruded upon. |
______________________
| 2. The entry “Voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons or means. | 324 | The person to whom hurt is caused.” |
omitted by Act 25 of 2005, sec. 28.
3. Subs. by Act 25 of 2005, sec. 28, for “Ditto”.
4. Subs. by Act 25 of 2005, sec. 28, for “two hundred and fifty rupees”.
(3) When any offence is compoundable under this section, the abetment of such offence or an attempt to commit such offence (When such attempt is itself an offence) may be compounded in like manner.
(4) (a) When the person who would otherwise be competent to compound an offence under this section is under the age of eighteen years or is an idiot or a lunatic, any person competent to contract on his behalf, may, with the permission of the Court compound such offence. (b) When the person who would otherwise be competent to compound an offence under this section is dead, the legal representative, as defined in the Code of Civil procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908) of such person may, with the consent of the court compound such offence.
(5) When the accused has been committed for trial or when he has been convicted and an appeal is pending no composition for the offence shall be allowed without the leave of the court to which he is committed, or as the case may be, before which the appeal is to be heard.
(6) A High Court or Court of session acting in the exercise of its power of revision under section 401 may allow any person to compound any offence which such person is competent to compound under this section.
(7) No offence shall be compounded if the accused is, by reason of previous conviction, liable either to enhanced punishment or to a punishment of a different kind for such offence.
(8) The Composition of an offence under this section shall have the effect of an acquittal of the accused with whom the offence has been compounded.
(9) No offence shall be compounded except as provided by this section.
Cr PC (Amendment) Act, 2005 (Notes on Clauses)
The Table appended to sub-section (2) has been amended so as to make the offence under section 324 o the Indian Penal Code, a non-compoundable offence and to enhance the value of the property mentioned in respect of sections 379, 381, 406, 407, 408, 411 and 414 of the Indian Penal Code to two thousand rupees instead of two hundred and fifty rupees since the value of money has gone down considerably.
State Amendment
Madhya Pradesh.
In section, in the table below sub-section (2),-. (i) in column first, second and third before section 324 and entries relating thereto, the following sections and entries relating thereto shall be inserted, namely:-.
| “(1) | (2) | (3) |
| Rioting | 147 |
The person against whom the force or violence is used at the time of committing an offence: |
| Provided that the accused is not charged with other offence which is not compundable. | ||
| Rioting armed with deadly weapon | 148 |
The person against whom the force or violence is used at the time of committing an offence: |
| Provided that the accused is not charged with other offence which is not compundable. | ||
| Obscene acts or use of obscene words | 294 | The person against whom abscene acts were done or obscene words were used.” |
| (ii) in column first, second and third, after section 500 and entries relating thereto, the following section and entries relating thereto shall be inserted, namely:- | ||
| Criminal intimidation if threat to be cause death or grievous hurt, etc. | Part II of section 506 | The person against whom the offence of Criminal Intimidation was committed.” |
[Vide Madhya Pradesh Act 17 of 1999, sec. 3 (w.e.f. 21-5-1999)]
