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The Punjab and Haryana High Court has held that a man who initiates a conversation with a woman but desists after being rebuffed does not commit the offence of outraging the modesty of a woman as defined under Section 354 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Justice Kirti Singh, while quashing a Section 354 case, clarified that such an action, though it may be annoying and unwelcome, does not rise to the level of shocking the sense of decency of a woman.

The case related to an incident at the library of Pandit Bhagwat Dayal Sharma Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (PGIMS), Rohtak, in July 2020. The accused, a medical student himself, greeted a female student and attempted to start a conversation. On her refusal, he immediately left the library. Despite this, he was booked under Section 354 IPC following the woman’s complaint.

The Court, agreeing with the accused’s counsel, noted the absence of any allegation of assault or criminal force, which are necessary ingredients for a Section 354 IPC offence. The complainant’s statements confirmed that after her refusal, the accused simply left without any persistence or intimidation.

Consequently, the High Court concluded that the mere act of attempting to engage in conversation—without use of force, persistence, or any other aggravating element—cannot, even prima facie, meet the threshold for outraging a woman’s modesty. Accordingly, the FIR registered by Rohtak police against the accused was quashed. This decision distinguishes between conduct that is simply unwelcome and that which is criminally culpable under Indian law.Merely Trying to Initiate Conversation with Woman Not Offence of Outraging Modesty, P&H High Court Holds
Court Finds No Criminal Force or Shock to Decency, FIR Quashed in Section 354 IPC Case

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has held that a man simply attempting to initiate a conversation with a woman, and withdrawing after being turned down, does not constitute the offence of outraging the modesty of a woman under Section 354 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Justice Kirti Singh, quashing the FIR against the accused, reasoned that while such conduct may be annoying or unwelcome, it does not shock the sense of decency of a woman as required for the offence under Section 354.

The case pertained to a July 2020 incident at the library of Pandit Bhagwat Dayal Sharma PGIMS, Rohtak, where the accused greeted a medical student and tried to start a conversation. Upon her refusal, he left the premises, but was still subsequently booked under Section 354 IPC based on her complaint. The Court noted the woman’s own statement confirmed that the man left as soon as she expressed her unwillingness to converse and that the record was devoid of any allegations of criminal force.

Accepting the submissions of the defence that there was no assault or use of force, the Court found that no ingredients of Section 354 IPC were made out in the case. “Given the facts and circumstances of the case, … when the record is silent with respect to use of any criminal force by the petitioner, even prima facie, the ingredients of Section 354 of IPC are not made out,” the order stated. The FIR was accordingly quashed, with the Court affirming the distinction between unwelcome social conduct and a criminal offence.