354 vs 74

IPC Section 354 / BNS Section 74 is one of the most invoked provisions in Indian criminal law for physical acts of molestation and sexual indecency. The offence requires three elements: (1) assault or use of criminal force on a woman; (2) intention or knowledge that the act will outrage her modesty; and (3) the woman must be a woman. The critical concept is 'modesty' — the Supreme Court in State of Punjab v. Major Singh (1966) established the foundational test: modesty is 'the attribute of a female aroused by the presence of a man she has no reason to trust — it is not an attribute that can be attributed to an unconscious or very young victim who cannot be outraged.' The court then evolved the objective test: would the act be considered outraging the modesty of a reasonable woman in all the circumstances? The landmark Rupan Deol Bajaj v. KPS Gill (1995) case — where Punjab Police DGP KPS Gill was convicted for slapping IPS officer Rupan Deol Bajaj on her posterior at an official dinner — established that a person's seniority or authority provides no immunity, and that even a brief single act of deliberate sexual indecency in a social/official setting constitutes Section 354. The intent requirement can be inferred from the nature of the act — in most cases, intent is presumed from the nature of the assault on a woman. The 2013 Criminal Law Amendment Act strengthened Section 354 by introducing the mandatory minimum of 1 year, removing the discretion to impose a lower sentence. BNS 74 carries this entire framework forward intact.