Any transfer of property before a court judgment is illegal.

Only fraudulent transfers made specifically to cheat a known or expected court order (fine, forfeiture, or civil decree) are punished — genuine, honest transactions are not covered.

This section only applies after a court has already passed its order.

The law also covers situations where the person merely knows or expects that such an order is likely to be made, even before it is actually pronounced.

Indian Penal Code, 1860

Section 206

repealed

Fraudulent removal or concealment of property to prevent its seizure as forfeited or in execution

Whoever fraudulently removes, conceals, transfers or delivers to any person any property or any interest therein, intending thereby to prevent that property or interest therein from being taken as a forfeiture or in satisfaction of a fine, under a sentence which has been pronounced, or which he knows to be likely to be pronounced, by a Court of Justice or other competent authority, or from being taken in execution of a decree or order which has been made, or which he knows to be likely to be made by a Court of Justice in a civil suit, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to two years, or with fine, or with both.§

Why this exists

Courts and the law need real teeth: if people could dodge fines, forfeitures, or civil decrees simply by quietly moving their assets to a relative's name or hiding them, judicial orders would become meaningless. This section, part of the original Indian Penal Code of 1860, protects the enforceability of court judgments by criminalizing deliberate, fraudulent attempts to place property out of the court's reach.

Common misconceptions

Myth: Any transfer of property before a court judgment is illegal.
Fact: Only fraudulent transfers made specifically to cheat a known or expected court order (fine, forfeiture, or civil decree) are punished — genuine, honest transactions are not covered.
Myth: This section only applies after a court has already passed its order.
Fact: The law also covers situations where the person merely knows or expects that such an order is likely to be made, even before it is actually pronounced.