Labour Hub › Industrial Relations Code › Sections › Section 89

Industrial Relations Code, 2020 · CHAPTER XIII — OFFENCES AND PENALTIES

Section 89: Composition of offences

Reviewed by Finin2min Editorial Desk · Last reviewed 30 August 2026

Section 89 — Governs composition of offences and the rights, duties, powers or procedure expressly stated in this section. Key operative text: (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), any offence punishable under this Code, not being an offence punishable with imprisonment only, or with imprisonment and also with…

Full official textSource checked: 20 August 20262 direct Central Rule link(s)

Current-law status

All provisions were brought into force from 21 November 2025 under S.O. 5320(E); use the current India Code consolidation because the Code also reflects the 2026 amendment/transition framework.

Primary sources

Provision / India Code ↗ · Official Act PDF ↗ · 2026 Central Rules ↗

Finin2min analysis — what the section actually does

Operative clauses

(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), any offence punishable under this Code, not being an offence punishable with imprisonment only, or with imprisonment and also with fine, may, on an application of the accused person, either before or after the institution of any prosecution, be compounded by a Gazetted Officer, as the appropriate Government may, by…
Provided that such amount of composition shall be credited to the Social Security Fund established under section 141 of the Social Security Code, 2020.
(2) Nothing contained in sub-section (1) shall apply to an offence committed by a person for the second time or thereafter within a period of three years from the date— (a) of commission of a similar offence which was earlier compounded;
(3) Every officer referred to in sub-section (1) shall exercise the powers to compound an offence, subject to the direction, control and supervision of the appropriate Government.
(4) Every application for the compounding of an offence shall be made in such manner as may be prescribed.

Provisos, explanations & qualifications

Provided that such amount of composition shall be credited to the Social Security Fund established under section 141 of the Social Security Code, 2020.

Thresholds and timelines in the text

Composition of offences.—(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), any offence punishable under this Code, not being an offence punishable with imprisonment only, or with imprisonment and also with fine, may, on an application of the accused person, either before or after the institution of any…
(2) Nothing contained in sub-section (1) shall apply to an offence committed by a person for the second time or thereafter within a period of three years from the date— (a) of commission of a similar offence which was earlier compounded;
(7) Any person who fails to comply with an order made by the officer referred to in sub-section (1), shall be liable to pay a sum equivalent to twenty per cent. of the maximum fine provided for the offence, in addition to such fine.

Actors expressly appearing in the text

Appropriate Government

Full statutory text — Section 89

Official English text transcribed from the current India Code consolidation; page headers/line breaks are normalised for web reading. The Gazette/India Code PDF remains authoritative for typography, amendment footnotes and schedules.

89. Composition of offences.—(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal
Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), any offence punishable under this Code, not being an offence punishable
with imprisonment only, or with imprisonment and also with fine, may, on an application of the accused
person, either before or after the institution of any prosecution, be compounded by a Gazetted Officer,
as the appropriate Government may, by notification, specify, for a sum of fifty per cent. of the maximum
fine provided for such offence punishable with fine only and for a sum of seventy-five per cent.
    provided for such offence punishable with imprisonment for a term which is not more than one year
or with fine, in the manner as may be prescribed:
   Provided that such amount of composition shall be credited to the Social Security Fund established
under section 141 of the Social Security Code, 2020.
   (2) Nothing contained in sub-section (1) shall apply to an offence committed by a person for the
second time or thereafter within a period of three years from the date—
       (a) of commission of a similar offence which was earlier compounded;
       (b) of commission of similar offence for which such person was earlier convicted.
   (3) Every officer referred to in sub-section (1) shall exercise the powers to compound an offence,
subject to the direction, control and supervision of the appropriate Government.
   (4) Every application for the compounding of an offence shall be made in such manner as may be
prescribed.
   (5) Where any offence is compounded before the institution of any prosecution, no prosecution shall
be instituted in relation to such offence, against the offender in relation to whom the offence is so
compounded.
   (6) Where the composition of any offence is made after the institution of any prosecution, such
composition shall be brought by the officer referred to in sub-section (1) in writing, to the notice of the
adjudicating officer appointed under sub-section (1) of section 85 before whom the prosecution is
pending and on such notice of the composition of the offence being given, the person against whom the
offence is so compounded shall be discharged.
    (7) Any person who fails to comply with an order made by the officer referred to in sub-section (1),
shall be liable to pay a sum equivalent to twenty per cent. of the maximum fine provided for the offence,
in addition to such fine.
    (8) No offence punishable under the provisions of this Code shall be compounded except under and
in accordance with the provisions of this section.
                                             CHAPTER XIV
                                              MISCELLANEOUS

How to apply this provision

Primary statutory test — (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), any offence punishable under this Code, not being an offence punishable with imprisonment only, or with imprisonment and also with fine, may, on an application of the accused person, either before or after the institution of any prosecution, be compounded by a Gazetted Officer, as the appropriate Government may, by…
Additional operative limb — Provided that such amount of composition shall be credited to the Social Security Fund established under section 141 of the Social Security Code, 2020.
Qualification / exception to test — Provided that such amount of composition shall be credited to the Social Security Fund established under section 141 of the Social Security Code, 2020.
Numerical or timing control — Composition of offences.—(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), any offence punishable under this Code, not being an offence punishable with imprisonment only, or with imprisonment and also with fine, may, on an application of the accused person, either before or after the institution of any…
Central Rule mapping — 38, 44. Read the mapped provision together with this text rather than treating the concordance as a substitute for it.
Prescribed-form link recorded in the corpus — XV. Confirm the current notified form/version before filing.

Why this is section-specific: the operative-clause, exception, threshold and cross-reference panels above are extracted from Section 89 itself rather than a generic “trigger/control/evidence” template.

Rules, forms and cross-references

Direct 2026 Central Rule mapping

Rule 38 Rule 44

Forms mapped

Other sections cited in this text

Section 85

Related Labour Hub resources

Model Standing Orders, 2026 Labour litigation

A direct concordance is not exhaustive. Central/State jurisdiction, schemes, authority appointments, saved instruments and later notifications may change the practical route without changing the section wording.

Worked example

When an event triggers composition of offences, record the trigger date, competent authority, prescribed rule/form, filing or decision step, service/acknowledgement and final outcome. A statutory point to test is: “Composition of offences.—(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), any offence punishable under this Code, not being an offence punishable with imprisonment only, or with imprisonment and also with fine, may, on an application of ” Also test the express qualification/proviso before concluding the result. Read the mapped Central Rule(s) 38, 44. Use the current notified XV where the process requires it.

Illustration only; it is not statutory text or a substitute for applying the actual facts, jurisdiction, current rule/scheme and official instrument.

Q&A — Section 89

What does Section 89 of the Industrial Relations Code cover?

What is the main legal requirement or power in Section 89?

The first operative clause identified from the official text is: “(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), any offence punishable under this Code, not being an offence punishable with imprisonment only, or with imprisonment and also with fine, may, on an application of the accused person, either before or after the institution of any prosecution, be compounded by a Gazetted Officer, as the appropriate Government may, by…” Read it with the remaining subsections and any proviso below.

Does Section 89 contain a proviso or explanation?

Yes. A qualification extracted from the official text is: “Provided that such amount of composition shall be credited to the Social Security Fund established under section 141 of the Social Security Code, 2020.”

What time limit, percentage or amount appears in Section 89?

The provision contains this numerical/time expression: “Composition of offences.—(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), any offence punishable under this Code, not being an offence punishable with imprisonment only, or with imprisonment and also with fine, may, on an application of the accused person, either before or after the institution of any…” Apply it only in the clause and context in which it appears.

Which 2026 Central Rules are linked to Section 89?

The current concordance maps Section 89 to Central Rule(s) 38, 44.

Is a prescribed form mapped to Section 89?

The current corpus records: XV. Confirm the current notified version before filing or service.

Is Section 89 currently operative?

All provisions were brought into force from 21 November 2025 under S.O. 5320(E); use the current India Code consolidation because the Code also reflects the 2026 amendment/transition framework.

Source & verification trail

Act: Industrial Relations Code, 2020 — official India Code PDF ↗

Central Rules: Industrial Relations (Central) Rules, 2026 — G.S.R. 342(E), 8 May 2026 ↗

Official library: Ministry of Labour & Employment — Labour Codes ↗

Source check: 20 August 2026. Individual professional interpretation should be re-reviewed when the section, rules, notification, scheme, State overlay or controlling judgment changes.

Reliance note: This page is an educational legal-reference layer. Verify the current official text, the applicable Central/State rules, notifications, schemes and judicial decisions before acting on a live matter.