Section 71

Section 71 is one of the most constitutionally fraught provisions in the BNS — it reproduces, with minor modifications, the colonial-era IPC Section 377. The section criminalises 'carnal intercourse against the order of nature' — a phrase Macaulay imported from English ecclesiastical law in 1860 that the courts have interpreted to mean non-penile-vaginal intercourse, including oral sex, anal sex, and bestiality. The provision's treatment of LGBTQ+ persons in India has been the subject of the most significant constitutional litigation of the 21st century. In Navtej Singh Johar v. Union of India (2018), a five-judge constitutional bench of the Supreme Court unanimously read down IPC 377 to decriminalise consensual same-sex conduct between adults, holding that criminalising such conduct violated the rights to dignity, privacy, and equality under Articles 14, 15, 19, and 21 of the Constitution. The BNS retains Section 71 but — consistent with the Navtej Singh Johar judgment — it applies only to non-consensual acts and acts involving animals (bestiality). Consensual sexual conduct between adults, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity, is not criminalised. The provision's continuing importance lies in its application to: non-consensual anal and oral sexual assault (including male rape and child sexual abuse not covered by Section 63's gender-specific definition); and bestiality. The POCSO Act 2012 provides a separate comprehensive framework for child sexual abuse, but BNS 71 fills residual gaps particularly for male victims of sexual violence.