This section excuses any crime committed under pressure or fear.

It only applies to threats of instant death, not fear of future harm, financial loss, or harm to reputation.

If you're forced to kill someone under threat of death, you're protected by this law.

Murder is explicitly excluded — no threat, however severe, justifies killing another person under this section.

Anyone who claims they were 'threatened' automatically gets this defense.

Courts examine whether the threat was real, immediate, and reasonably believed to mean instant death — vague or exaggerated claims of fear won't suffice.

Indian Penal Code, 1860

Section 94

repealed

Act to which a person is compelled by threats

Except murder, and offences against the State punishable with death, nothing is an offence which is done by a person who is compelled to do it by threats, which, at the time of doing it, reasonably cause the apprehension that instant death to that person will otherwise be the consequence;§

Why this exists

This provision reflects a long-standing principle in criminal law: the law generally does not punish people for acts done under extreme duress, because true free will is absent when someone faces immediate death. The drafters of the IPC, following English common law traditions, carved out this defense for ordinary crimes but drew a firm line at murder and grave offences against the State, reasoning that no threat should excuse taking an innocent life or endangering the sovereignty of the State.

How courts read it

Indian courts have interpreted this section strictly, holding that the threat must be of instant death, not merely serious harm, future harm, or threats to property or reputation. Courts have also held that a person who voluntarily joins a criminal gang or places themselves in a position where they might foreseeably face such compulsion cannot later claim this defense (a limitation set out in the Explanation to Section 94, though the exact judicial precedents are not cited here).

Common misconceptions

Myth: This section excuses any crime committed under pressure or fear.
Fact: It only applies to threats of instant death, not fear of future harm, financial loss, or harm to reputation.
Myth: If you're forced to kill someone under threat of death, you're protected by this law.
Fact: Murder is explicitly excluded — no threat, however severe, justifies killing another person under this section.
Myth: Anyone who claims they were 'threatened' automatically gets this defense.
Fact: Courts examine whether the threat was real, immediate, and reasonably believed to mean instant death — vague or exaggerated claims of fear won't suffice.