Section 311-315

Sections 311–315 target the organised criminal infrastructure of property crime — not just individual thieves, but the networks and habitual structures that make property crime a profession. Section 311 (belonging to a gang of thieves) criminalises membership in any organised group whose purpose is the habitual commission of theft or robbery. This is a status offence — being a member of such a gang is criminal regardless of whether any specific theft can be proved against the individual. It reflects the law's recognition that organised theft networks cause far more cumulative harm than any single theft. Section 312 addresses gangs of dacoits — with correspondingly higher punishment reflecting dacoity's violent character. Section 313–315 target the receiving end of organised property crime: receiving property stolen by a child (often used by gang leaders who deploy children as pickpockets), habitually dealing in stolen property, and assisting a gang of thieves in concealing or disposing of stolen goods. Together these provisions treat the entire ecosystem of organised property crime — the thieves, the fences, the gang leaders, and those who receive stolen goods — as criminally liable actors.