Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 · Chapter VII: Of Offences against the State
Section 153: Waging war against Government of any foreign State at peace with Government of India
In plain words
Waging war, attempting to wage war, or abetting war against the government of a foreign State at peace with India is punishable with imprisonment for life, or up to seven years, with or without a fine, or with a fine alone.
A simplified explanation, prepared with AI assistance from the official text below and checked automatically against it for numbers and cross-references. The official text is the law and prevails over this summary. Not legal advice.
Official text
Whoever wages war against the Government of any foreign State at peace with the Government of India or attempts to wage such war, or abets the waging of such war, shall be punished with imprisonment for life, to which fine may be added, or with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, to which fine may be added, or with fine.
Corresponding sections were matched by comparing the wording of both official texts, and for the IPC and BNS, also against a published correspondence table. Wording, punishments and structure often changed, so read both sections before relying on the match.
Source: India Code (indiacode.gov.in), the consolidated text published by the Legislative Department, Government of India. Text as updated on India Code on 25 August 2026. Words in square brackets [ ] were inserted or substituted by later amending Acts, and *** marks words omitted by an amendment. The amendment footnotes are not reproduced here. Official text on India Code.
Supreme Court judgments citing the section 153
No Supreme Court judgment in our database cites this section yet.