What is IPC Section 274?
IPC Section 274 sits in Chapter XIV of the Indian Penal Code, "Of Offences Affecting the Public Health, Safety, Convenience, Decency and Morals," within the sub-cluster addressing adulteration of food and drugs (Sections 272–276). Drug adulteration sits alongside food adulteration as a distinct public health concern, but carries its own specific provision given the heightened risk that a compromised medicine poses — patients relying on it for treatment may suffer directly if the drug's efficacy is reduced, its action altered, or the substance made outright harmful.
The section requires either specific intent that the adulterated drug be sold or used for a medicinal purpose as though it were unadulterated, or knowledge that this outcome is likely — ensuring the offence targets deliberate or knowingly reckless tampering, rather than accidental contamination or degradation during normal storage or handling.
Important Update: IPC to BNS Transition
With effect from 1 July 2024, the Indian Penal Code has been replaced by the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023 for offences committed on or after that date. Section 274 IPC now corresponds to Section 276 of the BNS, which raises the maximum imprisonment from 6 months to 1 year, and the maximum fine from ₹1,000 to ₹5,000.
Legal Provision — Text of Section 274 IPC
This provision must be read together with Section 275, which punishes knowingly selling, offering for sale, or issuing an adulterated drug as unadulterated — the companion offence targeting the sale and distribution side of adulterated drugs, rather than the act of adulteration itself. Prosecutions involving drugs in the strict pharmaceutical sense also commonly engage the specialised Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940, which provides its own, generally more stringent framework — including punishment up to life imprisonment where a person's death results from the use of adulterated or spurious drugs.
Punishment Under Section 274
| Punishment | Imprisonment of either description up to 6 months, or fine up to ₹1,000, or both |
|---|---|
| Nature of Offence | Non-cognizable — police generally require a Magistrate's order to investigate or arrest |
| Bailable / Non-Bailable | Non-bailable — bail is not a matter of right and must be applied for before the court |
| Compoundable | Non-compoundable |
| Triable By | Any Magistrate |
The non-bailable classification, despite the comparatively modest maximum sentence, reflects the seriousness the law attaches to public health risks — even a relatively short custodial term is treated as warranting a formal bail application rather than automatic release, given the potential harm to unsuspecting patients relying on the adulterated drug.
Key Ingredients / Essential Elements
Adulteration of a drug or medical preparation
The accused must have adulterated a drug or medical preparation — that is, altered its composition or quality.
Lessened efficacy, changed operation, or rendered noxious
The adulteration must have lessened the drug's efficacy, changed how it operates, or made it noxious (harmful).
Intent or knowledge regarding medicinal sale or use
The accused must have intended, or known it likely, that the adulterated drug would be sold or used for a medicinal purpose as if it had not been adulterated.
How Section 274 Relates to Neighbouring Provisions
- Section 272 punishes adulteration of food or drink intended for sale, addressing a parallel but distinct public health concern.
- Section 274 (this section) punishes the adulteration of drugs or medical preparations themselves.
- Section 275 punishes knowingly selling, offering for sale, or issuing an adulterated drug as unadulterated — the companion offence for reliance on, or distribution of, the adulterated product.
- Section 276 punishes selling a drug as a different drug or preparation, addressing a related but distinct form of medicinal deception.
- The Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 operates as a specialised, more detailed statutory framework for regulating drug quality and safety, often providing significantly more stringent penalties — including up to life imprisonment where death results from adulterated or spurious drugs — and frequently forms the primary basis for prosecution in serious pharmaceutical adulteration cases.