Indian Penal Code, 1860 · Chapter IV: General Exceptions
Section 87: Act not intended and not known to be likely to cause death or grievous hurt, done by consent
The Indian Penal Code, 1860 was repealed and replaced by the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 from 1 July 2024. It still applies to matters and proceedings from before that date, as the repealing law provides.
In plain words
An act not intended, and not known to be likely, to cause death or grievous hurt is not an offence because of harm it causes to a person above eighteen years of age who consented, expressly or impliedly, to suffer that harm or take the risk of it.
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.
Read the in-depth explanation, with key Supreme Court rulings ↓
Official text
Nothing which is not intended to cause death, or grievous hurt, and which is not known by the doer to be likely to cause death or grievous hurt, is an offence by reason of any harm which it may cause,
or be intended by the doer to cause, to any person, above eighteen years of age, who has given consent, whether express or implied, to suffer that harm; or by reason of any harm which it may be known by the doer to be likely to cause to any such person who has consented to take the risk of that harm.
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 (Legislative Department), the text of the Act as it stood before its repeal. 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.
Understanding this section
Section 87 protects acts not intended, and not known to be likely, to cause death or grievous hurt, done with the consent of a person above eighteen who agrees to suffer, or take the risk of, that harm. It is the basis on which sports and games involving physical contact are lawful.
Key points
- Consent must come from the person harmed, who must be above eighteen.
- Consent may be express or implied, such as by entering a boxing ring.
- The act must not be intended or known to be likely to cause death or grievous hurt.
- Consent covers only harm within the risk agreed to; a deliberate foul outside the rules is not covered.
Where 87, 88 and 92 fit
| Section | Whose consent | Limit |
|---|---|---|
| 87 | Adult (18+) victim | No intention or knowledge of likely death or grievous hurt |
| 88 | Any consenting person, for their benefit | No intention to cause death |
| 89 | Guardian, for a child under 12 or person of unsound mind | Provisos exclude death and certain grave harms |
| 92 | No consent possible in time | Good faith for the person's benefit; provisos apply |
Common mistakes
- Reading consent as a defence to murder; section 87 never covers intended or knowingly likely death or grievous hurt.
- Forgetting section 91: consent never excuses acts that are offences regardless of harm.
Read with: Section 88 IPC, Section 90 IPC, Section 91 IPC, Section 25 BNS
Prepared with AI assistance as a study aid. Every ruling listed was checked against the Supreme Court's own judgments on this site, and quoted words appear in those judgments; linked names open the full judgment. Read the judgments themselves before relying on them. Not legal advice.
Supreme Court judgments citing the section 87
No Supreme Court judgment in our database cites this section yet.