Section 241 of BNS : Section 241: Destruction of document or electronic record to prevent its production as evidence.

Explanation using Example

Example 1:

Ravi is a manager at a company and is involved in a legal dispute with a former employee, Sita, who has filed a case of wrongful termination against the company. The court has lawfully summoned Ravi to produce certain emails exchanged between him and Sita as evidence. Fearing that the emails might strengthen Sita's case, Ravi deletes the emails from the company's server and also destroys the backup copies. When the court finds out that Ravi intentionally destroyed the emails to prevent them from being used as evidence, Ravi is charged under Section 241 of The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023. He faces imprisonment for up to three years, a fine of up to five thousand rupees, or both.

Example 2:

Priya is a government contractor and is under investigation for alleged corruption in a public project. The investigating officer lawfully requires Priya to produce her financial records, including bank statements and transaction details, as evidence. Priya, knowing that these records could incriminate her, decides to delete the electronic records from her computer and also burns the physical copies. When the investigating officer discovers that Priya has destroyed these documents to prevent their use as evidence, she is charged under Section 241 of The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023. Priya could be sentenced to imprisonment for up to three years, fined up to five thousand rupees, or both.