Section 411 of BNSS : Section 411: Procedure in case of difference of opinion.

Explanation using Example

Example 1:

Scenario: A death penalty case is being heard by a Bench of two judges in the High Court. After reviewing all the evidence and arguments, one judge believes that the death penalty should be confirmed, while the other judge believes that the sentence should be commuted to life imprisonment.

Application of Section 411: Since the two judges are equally divided in their opinions, the case cannot be decided based on their split decision. According to Section 411, the case will then be decided in the manner provided by Section 433 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023. This typically means that the case may be referred to a larger Bench of judges or another procedure as outlined in Section 433 to resolve the deadlock.

Example 2:

Scenario: A death sentence case is under review by a Bench of three judges in the Supreme Court. After deliberation, one judge votes to confirm the death sentence, another judge votes to commute the sentence to life imprisonment, and the third judge abstains from voting due to a conflict of interest.

Application of Section 411: In this situation, the opinions of the two participating judges are equally divided. As per Section 411, the case cannot be resolved with the current split decision. Therefore, the case will be decided according to the procedure laid out in Section 433, which may involve referring the case to a larger Bench or following another specified procedure to reach a final decision.