Section 106(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita: The New Hit-and-Run Law and Why It Was Contested

A plain-language guide to the provision that replaced IPC Section 304A, the protests it triggered, and what it now means for drivers, victims and the criminal justice system.

In late 2023, Parliament replaced the Indian Penal Code with the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, and the Code of Criminal Procedure with the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023. Within this recodification, a single clause on hit-and-run accidents — which replaced the old IPC Section 304A — became BNS Section 106(2), prescribing punishment for a driver who causes a fatal accident and flees without reporting it.

The provision matters constitutionally because it shows how a routine recodification exercise can alter criminal liability for millions of ordinary citizens, particularly transport workers, without wide public debate beforehand. Once truckers and bus operators grasped its implications, protests erupted and brought parts of the country's road transport to a halt, illustrating the link between criminal law reform and public order, and the need for consultation before enacting such provisions.

For exams, remember: IPC 304A on causing death by negligence has been replaced by BNS Section 106, with sub-section (2) specifically addressing hit-and-run cases, and its rollout triggered major transport-sector protests.