Indian Penal Code, 1860
Section 273
repealedSale of noxious food or drink
Whoever sells, or offers or exposes for sale, as food or drink, any article which has been rendered or has become noxious, or is in a state unfit for food or drink, knowing or having reason to believe that the same is noxious as food or drink, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees, or with both.
Why this exists
This section complements the previous one: rather than punishing the act of adulterating food, it punishes knowingly selling food or drink that has already turned harmful or spoiled, protecting buyers from sellers who pass off unsafe products as fit for consumption to avoid a loss. It, too, now operates alongside the more detailed modern regime under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006. Replaced by the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, effective 1 July 2024.