Can you drill holes in coins to wear as pendants or incorporate them into jewellery?
Drilling a hole in any Republic of India coin — whether currently circulating or demonetised — is defacement prohibited under Coinage Act 2011 Section 11(2). The provision applies to 'any coin whether it is a legal tender or not.' This covers the ₹1 coin, the ₹5 coin, and equally the demonetised 25 paise coin. The penalty is up to 7 years imprisonment. The widespread practice of making pendants from old paise coins, while culturally common and rarely prosecuted, is technically a Coinage Act violation. For pre-Republic historical coins, the Coinage Act does not apply — but the Antiquities Act consideration applies to items 100 or more years old.
The defacement prohibition — what it covers
Section 11 of the Coinage Act 2011 uses two distinct prohibitions. Section 11(1) prohibits melting or destroying coins that are legal tender. Section 11(2) goes further: 'No person shall melt, or deface, any coin, whether it is a legal tender or not.' Drilling a hole through a coin permanently modifies its physical surface — this is textbook defacement. The prohibition applies to all Republic India coins: currently circulating coins, demonetised coins, and withdrawn coins alike.
The demonetised paise coin pendant — commonly practised, still prohibited
The widespread practice of making pendants from demonetised paise coins — 5 paise, 10 paise, 25 paise — sits in a practically unenforced but legally prohibited zone. These coins have no monetary value; their face value was trivial even when they circulated; the practice is culturally embedded; and enforcement action is essentially unheard of. But the Coinage Act's text is unambiguous: Section 11(2) prohibits defacement of 'any coin whether it is a legal tender or not.' The demonetisation in 2011 cancelled the legal tender status of 25 paise and below — it did not cancel the defacement prohibition.
Historical coins — different analysis
For coins that were never Republic of India legal tender — Mughal coins, British India coins, princely state coins — the Coinage Act 2011 does not apply. These coins are not 'coins' in the Coinage Act's sense of Government of India Republic coinage.
However, coins that are 100 or more years old are antiquities under the Antiquities and Art Treasures Act 1972. While the Antiquities Act does not contain an explicit prohibition on drilling holes in antiquities for personal use within India, the spirit of the Act — preserving historical heritage — makes deliberately defacing a 100+ year old coin inadvisable even without a specific offence provision. A collector who drills holes in a rare historical coin is permanently damaging an irreplaceable historical artefact.
Laws & authorities referenced in this chapter
Coinage Act 2011 — §11(2) (defacing any coin whether legal tender or not = prohibited)
Coinage Act 2011 — §12 (punishment: up to 7 years imprisonment or fine or both)
Antiquities and Art Treasures Act 1972 — spirit of preservation for 100+ year old items
RBI Press Release 2010-2011/1675 — 25 paise demonetised June 30, 2011 (legal tender status cancelled)
Drilling any Republic India coin: prohibited under Coinage Act §11(2) — 'any coin whether it is a legal tender or not.' Covers currently circulating AND demonetised coins equally. The 2011 demonetisation of sub-25 paise coins did NOT create a right to deface them. Demonetised paise coin pendants: culturally common, practically unenforced, but legally prohibited. Historical (pre-Republic) coins: Coinage Act does not apply; Antiquities Act spirit of preservation applies for 100+ year items.
This is educational content, not legal advice. For a specific situation, please consult a qualified legal professional. Excerpted from Currency, Coins & The Law by Mayank Agarwal, Part 13: Coins & Counterfeiting — The Coinage Act Framework and the Law Against Fake Currency.