BNS Section 5

Section 5 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, deals with the commutation of sentences.

In every case in which sentence of,
(a) death has been passed, the appropriate Government may, without the consent of the offender, commute the punishment for any other punishment provided by this Sanhita;
(b) imprisonment for life has been passed, the appropriate Government may, without the consent of the offender, commute the punishment for imprisonment of either description for a term not exceeding fourteen years.

Explanation
For the purposes of this section expression “appropriate Government” means,
(a) in cases where the sentence is a sentence of death or is for an offence against any law relating to a matter to which the executive power of the Union extends, the Central Government; and
(b) in cases where the sentence (whether of death or not) is for an offence against any law relating to a matter to which the executive power of the State extends, the Government of the State within which the offender is sentenced.

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