Legal Provisions of Section 327 of Indian Penal Code, 1860.
Voluntarily causing hurt to extort property, or to constrain to an illegal act:
This section penalises voluntarily causing hurt to extort property, or to constrain to an illegal act. It says that whoever causes hurt for the purpose of extorting any property or valuable security either from the sufferer or from any person interested in the sufferer, or of constraining either the sufferer or any person interested in such sufferer to do anything which is illegal or which may facilitate the commission of an offence, shall be punished with simple or rigorous imprisonment for a term extending up to ten years, and shall also be liable to fine. The section requires voluntary causing of hurt.
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ADVERTISEMENTS:
The purpose of the offender must be to extort any property or valuable security either from the sufferer or from anyone interested in the sufferer, or to constrain the sufferer or anyone interested in the sufferer to do anything which is illegal or which may facilitate commission of an offence. The section primarily deters dacoits, robbers and the like from extorting property etc. or compelling delivery of the same.
The expression ‘any person interested in the sufferer’ used in the section has a wide meaning and includes relatives and friends etc. The word ‘constraining’ means compelling or bringing about by force, and this against the sufferer’s consent is equally an offence. The words ‘voluntarily’, ‘valuable security’ and ‘illegal’ have been defined by sections 39, 40 and 44 of the Code respectively.
The offence under this section is cognizable, non-bailable and non-compoundable, and is triable by magistrate of the first class.