Indian Penal Code, 1860
Section 230 “Coin” defined
Coin is metal used for the time being as money, and stamped and issued by the authority of some State or Sovereign Power in order to be so used.
Indian coin.—Indian coin is metal stamped and issued by the authority of the Government of India in order to be used as money; and metal which has been so stamped and issued shall continue to be Indian coin for the purposes of this Chapter, notwithstanding that it may have ceased to be used as money.
(a) Cowries are not coin. (b) Lumps of unstamped copper, though used as money, are not coin. (c) Medals are not coin, inasmuch as they are not intended to be used as money. (d) The coin denominated as the Company’s rupee is Indian coin. (e)The “Farukhabad rupee”, which was formerly used as money under the authority of the Government of India, is Indian coin although it is no longer so used.
Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023
Section 178 Counterfeiting coin, Government stamps, currency-notes or bank-notes
Whoever counterfeits, or knowingly performs any part of the process of counterfeiting, any coin, stamp issued by Government for the purpose of revenue, currency-note or bank-note, shall be punished with imprisonment for life, or with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to fine.
Explanation.—For the purposes of this Chapter,—
(1) the expression “bank-note” means a promissory note or engagement for the payment of money to bearer on demand issued by any person carrying on the business of banking in any part of the world, or issued by or under the authority of any State or Sovereign Power, and intended to be used as equivalent to, or as a substitute for money;
(2) “coin” shall have the same meaning as assigned to it in section 2 of the Coinage Act, 2011 (11 of 2011) and includes metal used for the time being as money and is stamped and issued by or under the authority of any State or Sovereign Power intended to be so used;
(3) a person commits the offence of “counterfeiting Government stamp” who counterfeits by causing a genuine stamp of one denomination to appear like a genuine stamp of a different denomination;
(4) a person commits the offence of counterfeiting coin who intending to practise deception, or knowing it to be likely that deception will thereby be practised, causes a genuine coin to appear like a different coin; and
(5) the offence of “counterfeiting coin” includes diminishing the weight or alteration of the composition, or alteration of the appearance of the coin.
