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Section 74: Assault or Criminal Force to Woman with Intent to Outrage Modesty

Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita • Chapter V: Of Offences Against Women & Children • Official Statutory Text & Legal Guide

Chapter V: Of Offences Against Women & Children
Any Magistrate
Non-Bailable
Cognizable
Formerly Sec 354 IPC
Section 73 All 358 Sections of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Section 75

Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 74

Section 74 penalizes Assault or Criminal Force to a woman with intent to outrage her modesty, serving as a vital protective shield against physical molestation.

  • Assault Outraging Modesty: Section 74 (formerly Section 354 IPC) provides that whoever assaults or uses criminal force to any woman, intending to outrage or knowing it to be likely that they will thereby outrage her modesty, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term between one year and five years, and shall also be liable to fine.
  • Cognizable & Non-Bailable Status: The offence is cognizable, non-bailable, and triable by any Magistrate, establishing stringent statutory protection against gender-based criminal force.

This section provides an essential criminal safeguard protecting women's bodily integrity and personal dignity against physical molestation and harassment in public or private spaces.

The essence of the offence is the intention or knowledge to outrage female modesty, which is evaluated from the objective social perspective of a woman's bodily dignity and self-respect.

Key Landmark Precedents:
  • Rupan Deol Bajaj v. K.P.S. Gill (1995) 6 SCC 194: The Supreme Court held that the ultimate test for ascertaining whether modesty has been outraged is whether the act is such as could be perceived as shocking to the sense of decency of a woman, ruling that slapping a woman on her posterior constitutes an offence under this section.
  • Tarkeshwar Sahu v. State of Bihar (2006) 8 SCC 560: Held that female modesty is an inherent attribute of womanhood from birth and physical assault outraging dignity attracts mandatory imprisonment.
Legal Commentary:

Section 74 criminalizes unwelcome physical groping, molestation, and indecent contact that stops short of rape. By mandating a one-year minimum prison sentence, the statute treats violations of female modesty as grave cognizable offences.

Section 73 All 358 Sections of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Section 75