Section 149 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (CrPC) made it the duty of every police officer to prevent cognizable offences. Since 1 July 2024 the same rule, word for word, is Section 168 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS): “Every police officer may interpose for the purpose of preventing, and shall, to the best of his ability, prevent, the commission of any cognizable offence.” The section gives the police a power (“may interpose”) and puts on them a duty (“shall … prevent”). It applies only to cognizable offences, that is, offences for which the police may arrest without a warrant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Section 168 opens Chapter XII of the BNSS, “Preventive Action of the Police” (Sections 168 to 172), which carries over Sections 150 to 152 CrPC as Sections 169 to 171 (Section 151 CrPC, the preventive arrest, is now Section 170), drops Section 153 CrPC on weights and measures, and adds a new Section 172. This page explains each section, the 24-hour limit on a preventive arrest, the remedy for a wrongful one, and gives a summary in Hindi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Section 149 CrPC \/ Section 168 BNSS at a glance<\/p>\n
Reviewed and updated by Century Law Firm, Delhi \u2013 October 2026. Statutory references are to the Acts as in force on that date. The BNSS and the BNS are quoted from India Code (English text as on 6 October 2025, with no amendment to the sections discussed) and the firm’s Gazette-checked comparison data, the Hindi wording of the BNSS from the Gazette text on India Code, the repealed CrPC from its India Code copy, the Constitution from the Legislative Department’s 2026 edition, and the judgment from the Supreme Court’s own copy.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Section 149 CrPC is now Section 168 BNSS. The firm’s comparison data, checked against the Gazette, records “No change” between the two. The BNSS text reads:<\/p>\n\n\n\n “168. Police to prevent cognizable offences.\u2014Every police officer may interpose for the purpose of preventing, and shall, to the best of his ability, prevent, the commission of any cognizable offence.”<\/p>\n\n\n\nSection 149 CrPC and Section 168 BNSS: the text<\/h2>\n\n\n\n