Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023
Section 182
Making or using documents resembling currency-notes or bank-notes
(1) Whoever makes, or causes to be made, or uses for any purpose whatsoever, or delivers to any person, any document purporting to be, or in any way resembling, or so nearly resembling as to be calculated to
deceive, any currency-note or bank-note shall be punished with fine which may extend to three hundred rupees.
(2) If any person, whose name appears on a document the making of which is an offence under sub-section (1), refuses, without lawful excuse, to disclose to a police officer on being so required the name and address of the person by whom it was printed or otherwise made, he shall be punished with fine which may extend to six hundred rupees.
(3) Where the name of any person appears on any document in respect of which any person is charged with an offence under sub-section (1) or on any other document used or distributed in connection with that document it may, until the contrary is proved, be presumed that the person caused the document to be made.
Why this exists
Currency notes rely on public trust — people accept them because they look official and hard to copy. Long before modern anti-counterfeiting technology, lawmakers worried that even 'joke' or 'novelty' notes, advertisements, or props that closely mimicked real currency could confuse people or be misused to pass off as real money. This provision, inherited from Section 489-D of the old Indian Penal Code, targets that risk at a low level — it does not deal with actual forgery of currency (which is punished far more severely elsewhere) but with documents that merely resemble currency closely enough to deceive, such as fake notes used in films, games, or scams.
How courts read it
Under the identical predecessor provision (IPC Section 489-D), Indian courts have generally held that the resemblance must be close enough to genuinely have the potential to deceive an ordinary person — a note or document with unrealistic sizes, missing security features, or clear 'specimen'/'prop' markings usually does not qualify. Courts have also treated this as a minor, fine-only offence distinct from serious currency-forgery offences, reserving those heavier provisions for cases involving actual counterfeit currency meant to pass as legal tender.
Common misconceptions
- Myth: Making play money or prop notes for movies and pranks is always safe as long as you don't spend it.
Fact: The law focuses on how closely the document resembles real currency, not on whether you actually tried to use it as money — if it's close enough to fool someone, making or even just having it made can attract a fine. - Myth: This section covers serious currency counterfeiting, like fake notes used to scam banks.
Fact: This is a minor, fine-only offence for documents that merely resemble currency; actual forgery of currency notes to pass them off as genuine is punished separately and much more severely under other provisions.