Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023
Section 427
Powers of Appellate Court
After perusing such record and hearing the appellant or his advocate, if he appears, and the Public Prosecutor if he appears, and in case of an appeal under section 418 or section 419, the accused, if he appears, the Appellate Court may, if it considers that there is no sufficient ground for interfering, dismiss the appeal, or may—
(a) in an appeal from an order of acquittal, reverse such order and direct that further inquiry be made, or that the accused be re-tried or committed for trial, as the case may be, or find him guilty and pass sentence on him according to law;
(b) in an appeal from a conviction—
(i) reverse the finding and sentence and acquit or discharge the accused, or order him to be re-tried by a Court of competent jurisdiction subordinate to such Appellate Court or committed for trial; or
(ii) alter the finding, maintaining the sentence; or
(iii) with or without altering the finding, alter the nature or the extent, or the nature and extent, of the sentence, but not so as to enhance the same;
(c) in an appeal for enhancement of sentence—
(i) reverse the finding and sentence and acquit or discharge the accused or order him to be re-tried by a Court competent to try the offence; or
(ii) alter the finding maintaining the sentence; or
(iii) with or without altering the finding, alter the nature or the extent, or, the nature and extent, of the sentence, so as to enhance or reduce the same;
(d) in an appeal from any other order, alter or reverse such order;
(e) make any amendment or any consequential or incidental order that may be just or proper: Provided that the sentence shall not be enhanced unless the accused has had an opportunity of showing cause against such enhancement: Provided further that the Appellate Court shall not inflict greater punishment for the offence which in its opinion the accused has committed, than might have been inflicted for that offence by the Court passing the order or sentence under appeal.
Why this exists
This is the master provision defining the full range of an appellate court's powers once it decides to actually engage with an appeal on its merits -- covering acquittal appeals, conviction appeals, sentence-enhancement appeals, and other orders. The built-in limits (no enhancing a sentence without giving the accused a chance to argue, and never exceeding what the original court could have imposed) protect the accused's fundamental fairness rights even as the appellate court exercises very broad corrective power. It continues section 386 of the CrPC, 1973.
How courts read it
When hearing an appeal against acquittal, appellate courts apply well-established caution: they generally do not disturb an acquittal merely because another view of the evidence is possible, but will interfere where the trial court's view was perverse, unreasonable, or ignored crucial evidence -- principles laid down authoritatively by the Supreme Court in Chandrappa v. State of Karnataka (2007), which restated the standards guiding when an appellate court should reverse an acquittal under this kind of power.
Common misconceptions
- Myth: An appellate court can freely increase any sentence it wants.
Fact: A sentence can only be increased after giving the accused a chance to argue against enhancement, and the new punishment can never exceed what the original trial court could have legally imposed.