BACK TO SECTIONS(2005) 11 SCC 600AIR 1988 SC 1883
VariesCognizable: VariesVaries
Reform Highlights
1
Consolidated from IPC 120A and 120B into BNS 57.
2
Two limbs preserved — illegal act, and legal act by illegal means.
3
Punishment graduated by the seriousness of the object offence.
THE STATUTE
The Clause
When two or more persons agree to do, or cause to be done — (1) an illegal act, or (2) an act which is not illegal by illegal means, such an agreement is designated a criminal conspiracy.
Legal Commentary
Section 57 codifies criminal conspiracy — one of the most powerful and most scrutinised tools in Indian criminal law. Unlike abetment (which requires a completed or substantially advanced act), conspiracy liability attaches at the moment of agreement, making it the law's earliest intervention point in a criminal enterprise. The agreement itself is the crime. Two or more persons who meet and agree to commit a bank robbery have committed criminal conspiracy the moment they agree — they need not take a single further step. This is both the section's strength and its danger. It allows law enforcement to dismantle criminal enterprises before harm occurs, and it has been vital in prosecuting terror cells, drug cartels, and organised crime. Section 57 has two limbs: (1) agreeing to do an illegal act, and (2) agreeing to do a legal act through illegal means. The second limb is often overlooked but is expansive — an agreement among competitors to use illegal price-fixing is a criminal conspiracy. Indian courts have held that in a conspiracy, each conspirator is liable for everything done by any co-conspirator in furtherance of the common design — making it a rule of vicarious criminal liability.
Landmark Precedents
State (NCT of Delhi) v. Navjot Sandhu (2005)
RELEVANCE
Parliament Attack case — Supreme Court held that conspirators need not know each other personally; it is sufficient if they share the common object through a chain of agreements.
Kehar Singh v. State (Delhi Administration) (1988)
RELEVANCE
Indira Gandhi assassination conspiracy case — established that once conspiracy is proved, each conspirator is liable for acts of all others done in pursuance of the common object.
Case Simulations
"A group chat where members plan a bank robbery — all members who agreed to the plan are guilty of conspiracy from the moment of agreement."
"Business rivals who meet and agree to fix prices at an artificially high level — criminal conspiracy through illegal means to achieve a commercial goal."
"A terror cell planning an attack — each member is a conspirator even if they had different assigned roles."
Expert Insights
No. Courts have upheld 'chain conspiracies' where each link knows only the next — like a drug distribution network. The requirement is a shared criminal object, not mutual acquaintance.
Withdrawal is a partial defence, but only if you clearly communicate the withdrawal to co-conspirators and take affirmative steps to prevent the crime. Mere mental withdrawal is insufficient.