Section 79 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS) punishes any word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman. It is the renumbered Section 509 IPC, carried into the new code without change - the provision commonly invoked for lewd remarks, obscene gestures, harassing calls and messages, and intrusions upon a woman's privacy.
What Section 79 BNS provides
Whoever, intending to insult the modesty of any woman:
- utters any word, makes any sound or gesture, or exhibits any object, intending that the word or sound be heard, or the gesture or object be seen, by that woman; or
- intrudes upon the privacy of such woman,
shall be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years, and also with fine.
The essentials in plain language
- Intention to insult modesty is the core of the offence - the act must be aimed at the woman, with the insult intended, not merely careless or accidental. Courts ask whether the word, gesture or act is capable of shocking the sense of decency of a woman.
- The insult can take many forms - spoken words, sounds, gestures, an exhibited object, or an intrusion upon privacy. This is how the section reaches obscene phone calls, messages and peeping, and not just face-to-face conduct.
- No physical contact is required. Cases involving assault or criminal force to a woman fall under other, graver provisions; Section 79 covers the insult itself.
Procedure and bail
The offence is cognizable and bailable, and is triable by any Magistrate.
What changed from Section 509 IPC
Nothing of substance - the official comparison records a renumbering with no change. The punishment, raised to three years' simple imprisonment by the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013, is carried forward, and the case law under Section 509 continues to apply.
Leading Supreme Court judgments
- Rupan Deol Bajaj v. K.P.S. Gill (1995) - the Supreme Court's classic discussion of what a woman's "modesty" means, treating it as an attribute attaching to a woman by reason of her sex and refusing to quash proceedings for conduct insulting it.
Facing harassment of this kind, or accused of it? Whether particular words or conduct cross the statutory line is a fact-sensitive question best assessed early. Talk to a lawyer in your city or browse advocates in the Free Law directory.