Section 78 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS) is the offence of stalking. It replaced the well-known Section 354D of the Indian Penal Code when the BNS came into force on 1 July 2024, carrying the old provision forward without change.
What Section 78 BNS provides
A man commits stalking if he:
- follows a woman and contacts, or attempts to contact, her to foster personal interaction repeatedly despite a clear indication of disinterest by the woman; or
- monitors the use by a woman of the internet, email or any other form of electronic communication...
The section builds in its own exceptions. The conduct does not amount to stalking if the man shows that it was pursued for the purpose of preventing or detecting crime under a responsibility entrusted to him by the State, that it was pursued under any law or to comply with a condition or requirement imposed under any law, or that in the particular circumstances it was reasonable and justified.
Punishment, bail and trial
- First conviction - imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years, and fine. At this stage the offence is cognizable and bailable.
- Second or subsequent conviction - imprisonment which may extend to five years, and fine. The offence remains cognizable but becomes non-bailable.
Both tiers are triable by any Magistrate. Because the offence is cognizable, the police can register an FIR and investigate without waiting for a Magistrate's order. The graded scheme matters in practice: a first-time accused has a right to bail, while a repeat offender does not.
Points worth noting
The offence is gender-specific - it is committed by a man against a woman. It also does not require any physical contact or threat: persistent following or contact after the woman has clearly shown disinterest, or covert monitoring of her online life, is itself the offence. Complaints under this section frequently sit alongside other provisions, such as those dealing with sexual harassment or word or gesture insulting a woman's modesty, depending on the facts.
What changed from Section 354D IPC
Nothing of substance. The official comparison table records the provision as renumbered with no change, so the definition, the exceptions and the two-tier punishment all continue exactly as they stood under Section 354D IPC, and the case law and police practice developed under the old section continue to apply. Stalking is a relatively young offence - it entered the statute book in 2013, when Section 354D was inserted into the IPC on the recommendations of the Justice Verma Committee, and the BNS retains it as Section 78.
Being stalked, or accused under this section? Evidence in these cases - call records, chat logs, complaints made at the time - needs to be preserved early. Talk to a lawyer in your city or browse advocates in the Free Law directory.