Indian Penal Code, 1860
Section 274
repealedAdulteration of drugs
Whoever adulterates any drug or medical preparation in such a manner as to lessen the efficacy or change the operation of such drug or medical preparation, or to make it noxious, intending that it shall be sold or used for, or knowing it to be likely that it will be sold or used for, any medicinal purpose, as it had not undergone such adulteration, 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
Medicines are trusted precisely because patients cannot usually verify their composition themselves. This section protects that trust by punishing anyone who tampers with a drug's composition in a way that weakens, changes, or harms its effect, since doing so can leave patients undertreated or actively hurt while believing they are receiving proper medicine. Much of this ground is now covered in more technical detail by the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940, which sets modern pharmaceutical standards. The IPC has been replaced by the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, effective 1 July 2024.