The rule of autrefois acquit or autrefois convict is contained in

Section 337 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (formerly section 300 CrPC) contains the statutory bar against trying a person again for the same offence while an earlier competent acquittal or conviction remains operative, subject to its stated exceptions. Autrefois acquit and autrefois convict denote those pleas of prior acquittal or conviction. Section 334 concerns proof of earlier conviction or acquittal, not the substantive bar; sections 359 and 360 deal with compounding and withdrawal from prosecution.