Legal basis
DigiFIR follows the three criminal laws in force in India since 1 July 2024. They replaced the old codes, and their section numbers differ: theft was IPC 378 to 379 and is now BNS 303.
| Law | Covers | Replaced |
|---|---|---|
| Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS), Act 45 of 2023 | Offences and punishments | Indian Penal Code, 1860 |
| Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS), Act 46 of 2023 | Procedure: complaints, FIRs, investigation, arrest, bail, trial | Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 |
| Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 (BSA), Act 47 of 2023 | Evidence, including electronic records | Indian Evidence Act, 1872 |
Every section cited by the apps was checked against the text of these Acts as published in the Gazette of India (Extraordinary) on 25 December 2023. Later amendments are not covered.
IMPORTANT
Check India Code before relying on a section. A legal reference changed in one app must be changed in all four, and on this page.
A complaint is not an FIR
The apps use these words strictly:
- A complaint (information) is what a person gives the police. The citizen app files a complaint and gives a complaint number. It never registers an FIR.
- An FIR is information about a cognizable offence (one where the police may arrest without a warrant, BNSS s.2(1)(g)) recorded by the officer in charge of a police station (s.173(1)). Only the police register it, and only then is there an FIR number.
- The station must record it whatever the place of the offence (s.173(1), the "Zero FIR"), and then sends it to the station with jurisdiction.
- Information given electronically is taken on record once the informant signs it within three days (s.173(1)(ii)).
- The informant or victim gets a free copy of the FIR at once (s.173(2)).
- For offences punishable with three years or more but less than seven, the officer may, with the permission of an officer not below the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police, first hold a preliminary enquiry within 14 days (s.173(3)).
- If the officer in charge refuses to record it, the informant may send its substance in writing to the Superintendent of Police (s.173(4)) and, failing that, apply to a Magistrate with an affidavit, who may order an investigation (s.175(3)).
- Information about a non-cognizable offence is entered in a register (an NCR) and the informant is referred to the Magistrate; the police may not investigate it without the Magistrate's order (s.174).
Time limits
| Limit | Basis | Where DigiFIR counts it |
|---|---|---|
| No general chargesheet deadline; the investigation is completed "without unnecessary delay" | BNSS s.193(1) | The court app shows "No time limit counted" |
| Two months for the investigation of rape and the other offences listed (BNS 64 to 68, 70, 71; POCSO 4, 6, 8, 10), from the date the information was recorded | BNSS s.193(2) | Police and court apps; a ledger clock for the sections flagged in configuration |
| 90 days: the police tell the informant or victim how the investigation is going | BNSS s.193(3)(ii) | Police app; a ledger clock stopped by a progress update shared with the informant |
| Default bail if no report is filed within 90 days (offences punishable with death, life or ten years or more) or 60 days (others), from the first remand, while the accused is in custody | BNSS s.187(3) | Police and court apps; a ledger clock |
| Police custody at most 15 days in all | BNSS s.187(2) | Police and court apps; a single court authorisation never exceeds 15 days |
| A person arrested without a warrant is produced before a Magistrate within 24 hours | BNSS s.58 | Police app; a ledger clock in hours |
| The informant signs an e-complaint within 3 days | BNSS s.173(1)(ii) | Citizen and police apps; the ledger refuses to register an FIR before |
| A preliminary enquiry within 14 days | BNSS s.173(3) | Police app; a ledger clock |
Provisions and what DigiFIR does with them
From complaint to FIR
| Provision | What DigiFIR does |
|---|---|
| BNSS s.2(1)(g), s.2(1)(c) | Every BNS section in the police app's table carries its First Schedule classification: cognizable and bailable. An FIR needs at least one cognizable section, chosen by the officer. |
| BNSS s.173(1) | Only a duty officer or SHO registers an FIR, as an action signed with their key and endorsed by the state's police and the judiciary. A probable duplicate is never refused: it goes to a magistrate. |
| BNSS s.173(1), first proviso | Information from a woman against whom certain offences are alleged is recorded by a woman officer; the register sheet reminds the officer when such a section is picked. |
| BNSS s.173(1)(ii) | An e-complaint has three days to be signed by Aadhaar eSign or at the station, and cannot be registered before (ledger guard). |
| BNSS s.173(2) | The free FIR copy: an SMS link when the backend queued one, otherwise the app tells the officer to give the copy. |
| BNSS s.173(3) | A preliminary enquiry is offered only for the 3-to-7-year band of the cognizable sections, and needs a supervising officer of DSP rank or above. |
| BNSS s.174 | Record NCR: the substance goes into the NCR register, the informant is referred to the Magistrate, and the fortnightly report goes to the Magistrate. An NCR can still become an FIR if a cognizable offence comes to light (s.174(4)). |
| BNSS s.175(1) | A registered FIR opens a case at once. |
| BNS s.72 | For BNS 64 to 71, "Publish on the police website" stays off, and the ledger records the FIR as not to be published. |
| BNS s.217 | The citizen app's confirmation warns that giving false information to the police is punishable. |
Investigation
| Provision | What DigiFIR does |
|---|---|
| BNSS s.36, s.47, s.48 | Record arrest asks for each safeguard first: grounds and the right to bail told, a relative or friend informed, the arrest memo signed. |
| BNSS s.478(1), s.189 | Releases are recorded as the last entry of the custody record: police bail for a bailable offence, no grounds to forward, or a court's bail order. |
| BNSS s.105 | The search and seizure is filmed on the officer's phone, and the clip's SHA-256 goes on the ledger. |
| BNSS s.176(3) | For offences punishable with seven years or more, the forensic team's visit is recorded in the diary. |
| BNSS s.180, s.181 | Witness statements, in writing or on audio-video. |
| BNSS s.192 | The case diary: entries are added, never edited, numbered and hash-chained on the ledger. |
| BNSS s.193(3)(i) | File final report: a chargesheet or a closure report, with the report itself, to the Magistrate's court. |
| BNSS s.193(9) | A closure report never closes the complaint; the Magistrate may order further investigation. |
The court
| Provision | What DigiFIR does |
|---|---|
| BNSS s.187(2) | Remand: police or judicial custody, at most 15 days per order. Any magistrate of the state may sign it. |
| BNSS s.187(3) | Default bail: the court app counts the 60 or 90 days from the first remand the court recorded, while its remands hold the accused. |
| BNSS s.193(9) | Further investigation on a closure report. |
| BNSS s.210(1)(b) | Take cognizance of a chargesheet, opening the case in eCourts with a CNR. |
| BNSS s.528 | A quash is recorded as the High Court's order, with the order document attached and registered by its hash. |
The laboratory and evidence
| Provision | What DigiFIR does |
|---|---|
| BNSS s.329(1), (4) | Only a Government scientific expert listed in s.329(4) can seal a report; the ledger checks the designation on the analyst's key. |
| BSA s.61 to s.63 | A seizure clip or sealed report is an electronic record. To give it in evidence, a certificate under s.63(4) states its hash value: the SHA-256 recorded on the ledger. The apps keep the hash; the certificate itself is a document signed with eSign. |
Points not yet confirmed
The chaincode specification lists 20 legal points the team could not confirm from the text alone. Examples: the numbering of the High Court's inherent power (cited as s.528, numbered s.530 in an earlier Bill text), re-registration of a Zero FIR at the receiving station (a Ministry of Home Affairs practice that the BNSS text does not set out), and the magistrate's power to transfer an investigation. Each is marked in the specification for legal review before the pilot.
Sources: docs/legal-references.md of the four app repositories on the migration branch; digifir-chaincode docs/SPEC.md section 3.2 and Appendix B.