461. Whoever dishonestly, or with intent to commit mischief, breaks open, or unfastens, any closed receptacle which contains, or which he believes to contain, property, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to two years, or with fine, or with both.

Dishonestly breaking open any closed receptacle containing or sup

posed to contain property.

Punishment for same offence when

462. Whoever, being entrusted with any closed receptacle which contains, or which he believes to contain, property, without having aucommitted by per- thority to open the same, dishonestly, or with intent to commit mischief, breaks open, or unfastens, that receptacle, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to three years, or with fine, or with both.

son entrusted with custody.

CHAPTER XVIII.

OF OFFENCES RELATING TO DOCUMENTS AND TO TRADE OR

PROPERTY-MARKS.

For commentary on this chapter, see Part II., Chapter XII, and special references to the following sections.

463. WHOEVER makes any false document, or part of a document, with intent to cause damage, or Forgery. injury, to the public or to any person, or to support any claim or title, or to cause any person to part with property, or to enter into any express or implied contract, or with intent to commit fraud or that fraud may be committed, commits forgery.

For commentary on ss. 463, 464, see Part II., §§ 596-607.

Making a false 464. A person is said to make a false document

ocument.

First. Who dishonestly, or fraudulently, makes, signs, seals, or executes a document, or part of a document, or makes any mark denoting the execution of a document, with the intention of causing it to be believed that such document or part of a document was made, signed, sealed,

or executed by, or by the authority of, a person, by whom, or by whose authority, he knows that it was not made, signed, sealed, or executed, or at a time at which he knows that it was not made, signed, sealed, or executed; or,

Secondly.-Who, without lawful authority, dishonestly, or fraudulently, by cancellation or otherwise, alters a document in any material part thereof, after it has been made or executed either by himself or by any other person, whether such person be living or dead at the time of such alteration; or,

Thirdly. Who dishonestly, or fraudulently, causes any person to sign, seal, execute, or alter, a document, knowing that such person, by reason of unsoundness of mind or intoxication cannot, or that by reason of deception practised upon him, he does not, know the contents of the document, or the nature of the alteration.

Illustrations.

(a) A has a letter of credit upon B for Rupees 10,000, written by Z. A, in order to defraud B, adds a cypher to the 10,000, and makes the sum 100,000, intending that it may be believed by B that Z so wrote the letter. A has committed forgery.

(b) A, without Z's authority, affixes Z's seal to a document purporting to be a conveyance of an estate from Z to A, with the intention of selling the estate to B, and thereby of obtaining from B the purchasemoney. A has committed forgery.

(c) A picks up a cheque on a Banker signed by B, payable to bearer, but without any sum having been inserted in the cheque. A fraudulently fills up the cheque by inserting the sum of ten thousand rupees. A commits forgery.

(d) A leaves with B, his agent, a cheque on a Banker, signed by A, without inserting the sum payable, and authorizes B to fill up the cheque by inserting a sum not exceeding ten thousand rupees for the purpose of making certain payments. B fraudulently fills up the cheque by inserting the sum of twenty thousand rupees. B commits forgery.

(e) A draws a Bill of Exchange on himself in the name of B without B's authority, intending to discount it as a genuine bill with a Banker, and intending to take up the bill on its maturity. Here, as A draws the bill with intent to deceive the Banker by leading him to suppose that he had the security of B and thereby to discount the bill, A is guilty of forgery.

(f) Z's will contains these words-"I direct that all my remaining property be equally divided between A, B, and C." A dishonestly scratches out B's name, intending that it may be believed that the whole was left to himself and C. A has committed forgery.

(g) A endorses a Government Promissory Note and makes it payable to Z or his order, by writing on the bill the words " Pay to Z or his order," and signing the endorsement. B dishonestly erases the words "Pay to Z or his order," and thereby converts the special endorsement into a blank endorsement. B commits forgery.

(h) A sells and conveys an estate to Z. A afterwards, in order to defraud Z of his estate, executes a conveyance of the same estate to B, dated six months earlier than the date of the conveyance to Z, intending it to be believed that he had conveyed the estate to B before he conveyed it to Z. A has committed forgery.

(i) Z dictates his will to A. A intentionally writes down a different legatee from the legatee named by 7, and by representing to Z that he has prepared the will according to his instructions, induces Z to sign the will. A has committed forgery.

(j) A writes a letter and signs it with B's name without B's authority, certifying that A is a man of good character and in distressed circumstances from unforeseen misfortune, intending by means of such letter to obtain alms from Z and other persons. Here, as A made a false document in order to induce Z to part with property, A has committed forgery.

(k) A, without B's authority, writes a letter and signs it in B's name, certifying to A's character, intending thereby to obtain employment under Z. A has committed forgery, inasmuch as he intended to deceive Z by the forged certificate, and thereby to induce Z to enter into an expressed or implied contract for service.

Explanation 1.-A man's signature of his own name may amount to forgery.

Illustrations.

(a) A signs his own name to a Bill of Exchange, intending that it may be believed that the bill was drawn by another person of the same name. A has committed forgery.

(b) A writes the word "accepted" on a piece of paper and signs it with Z's name, in order that B may afterwards write on the paper a Bill of Exchange drawn by B upon Z, and negotiate the bill as though it had been accepted by Z. A is guilty of forgery; and if B knowing the fact draws the bill upon the paper pursuant to A's intention, B is also guilty of forgery.

(c) A picks up a Bill of Exchange payable to the order of a different person of the same name. A endorses the bill in his own name, intending to cause it to be believed that it was endorsed by the person to whose order it was payable; here A has committed forgery.

(d) A purchases an estate sold under execution of a decree against B. B, after the seizure of the estate, in collusion with Z, executes a lease of the estate to Z at a nominal rent and for a long period, and dates the lease six months prior to the seizure, with intent to defraud A, and to cause it to be believed that the lease was granted before the seizure. B, though he executes the lease in his own name, commits forgery by antedating it.

(e) A, a trader, in anticipation of insolvency, lodges effects with B for A's benefit and with intent to defraud his creditors, and in order to give a colour to the transaction writes a Promissory Note binding himself to pay to B a sum for value received, and antedates the note, intending that it may be believed to have been made before A was on the point of insolvency. A has committed forgery under the first head of the definition.

Explanation 2.-The making of a false document in the name of a fictitious person, intending it to be believed that the document was made by a real person, or in the name of a deceased person, intending it to be believed that the document was made by the person in his lifetime, may amount to forgery.

Illustration.

A draws a Bill of Exchange upon a fictitious person, and fraudu lently accepts the bill in the name of such fictitious person with intent to negotiate it. A commits forgery.

465. Whoever commits forgery shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to two years, or with fine, or with both.

Punishment for

forgery.

Forgery of a re

Justice, or of a public Register of Births, etc.

466. Whoever forges a document, purporting to be a record or proceeding of or in a Court of cord of a Court of Justice, or a Register of Birth, Baptism, Marriage, or Burial, or a Register kept by a public servant as such, or a certificate or document purporting to be made by a public servant in his official capacity, or an authority to institute or defend a suit, or to take any proceedings therein, or to confess judgment, or a power-of-attorney, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, and shall also be liable to fine.

Commentary.

The illegibility of the seal and signature on a forged document purporting to be made by a public servant in his official capacity, will not render a conviction under this section, or s. 471 void. (Reg. v. Prosunno, 5 Suth. Cr., 96.)

467. Whoever forges a document which purports to be a valuable security, or a will, or an authority to adopt a son, or which purports to give authority to any person to make or transfer any valuable security, or to receive the

Forgery of a valuable security

or will.

principal, interest, or dividends thereon, or to receive or deliver any money, movable property, or valuable security, or any document purporting to be an acquittance or receipt acknowledging the payment of money, or an acquittance or receipt for the delivery of any movable property or valuable security, shall be punished with transportation for life, or with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to fine.

Commentary.

The concoction of a document which, upon its face, appears to be a mere copy, and which, if a genuine copy, would not authorize the delivery of money or the doing of any other act referred to in this section, is not chargeable as an offence under s. 467. (Reg. v. Naro, 5 Bom. H. C. C. C, 56.) Of course, if the document purported to bear the signature of any public officer, authenticating it as a true copy, the forgery of his signature might be an offence under s. 465. A fraudulent alteration of a Collectorate challan is within this section. (Reg. v. Harish Chunder, Suth. Sp. Cr., 22.)

Forgery for the

468. Whoever commits forgery, intending that the document forged shall be used for the purpurpose of cheat pose of cheating, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, and

ing.

shall also be liable to fine.

Forgery for the purpose of harming the reputation of any person.

469. Whoever commits forgery, intending that the document forged shall harm the reputation of any party, or knowing that it is likely to be used for that purpose, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to three years, and shall also be liable to fine.

Commentary.

Thus, a person who forged a draft petition, with the intention of using it as evidence, and which contained false statements calculated to injure the reputation of a person, was held guilty of an offence under this section. (Reg. v. Shifait, 2 B. L. R. A. Cr., 12; S. C., 10 Suth. Cr., 61.)

ment.

forged docu

470. A false document made wholly or in part by forgery is designated "a forged document."