Eve Teasing and Law

Though eve- teasing and molestation are offence in India, women face these often while travelling
in public transport, walking on the street and at work places.
Woefully, women ignore such offences to avoid the harassment of going to police or court of law
and endure a mental agony. Eve-teasing is an act of perversion that includes actions like touching,
rubbing, groping, staring, pinching, slapping a woman or showing her private parts or pornographic
material, which intrude upon her privacy.
Although eve-teasing has not been defined as an offence in any law in India, similar behaviour is
punishable under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the legal remedy available to the victim is
lodging a complaint with the police or magistrate. Section 298 (A) and (B) of Indian Penal Code
prescribes upto three months imprisonment for making obscene gestures or remarks to a woman.
For showing pornographic or obscene pictures, books or slips to a woman, Section 292 of the IPC
prescribes upto two years imprisonment. The same punishment, with or without a fine, is meted
out under Section is 354 (IPC) to those who use force or assault a woman to outrage her modesty.
If the complaint of making obscene gestures, indecent body language and lewd comments
concerning a woman or exhibiting any such object, which intrudes upon the womans privacy is
proved, Section 509 of the IPC prescribes punishment upto one year imprisonment or fine.
However, these offences are bailable. More often than not, the offender easily gets away with a bail
immediately on his arrest, which protects him from suffering in jail custody. The high prevalence of
these offences point out that legislature should look into these provisions of law afresh and make
them non-bailable to prevent their occurrence.
But experts also feel that if this happens, women may misuse the law to falsely implicate anyone.
The need of the hour is thus to raise awareness about the existing law at least, if not modifying it.
Most of these acts cases go unreported at present, as victims are not aware if these are offences.
Psychologists are of the opinion that the men indulge in these acts as they are either sexually
repressed or believe that they are more powerful physically and emotionally than women. Law
and police should take the offence seriously to protect the modesty of women.

What a foreigner think about womens condition in India
Eve teasing is routine for women in public places in India and sadly, its merely one of many tools
used to keep women in their place according to traditional norms. Female infanticide, selective
abortions, sati (widow killing), dowry-related deaths, honour killings and sexual violence are still
commonly-featured news items and their prevalence demonstrates that Indian society is still an
environment of oppression against women.

Why do onlookers of such unacceptable behavior choose to be just that,
onlookers? Why doesn't a single person raise a voice against eve teasers?
Deserted and ill-lit areas are not the only unsafe spots that girls should avoid - they can be
harassed, groped, stared at, even in the most crowded places - and people around will just
carry on with their business. From the glitzy malls to overcrowded marketplaces to theatres
with a 200-odd audience, to a road manned by traffic cops, girls in the city have at least one
tale to share about being molested by a few louts while the rest of the people just look on.

Malls- a haven for eve teasers?
With end-of-season sales and special offers, malls witness a large footfall. And it won't take
long for anyone to make out that men take advantage of the crowd to pass comments and
make lewd gestures to girls. It doesn't help either that the entire vicinity is under CCTV
camera surveillance. Recalls Shikha Sojatia, an MBA student, "I had gone to a mall with my
friend on Independence Day, which is more crowded than the usual days sue to special
discounts and offers. After a while, we realized that a gang of four boys was following us. We
tried to ignore them, but they started passing obscene comments. When we complained to
the malls' security guards, they didn't seem to know what to do. Finally, I had to call my
brother to escort us to the mall's exit. Before this, I always thought that malls were safe and
only the posh crowd frequents them. But I guess, this men's degrading attitude towards
women has nothing to do with their social status."

Theatres- So what if there are 200 more people sitting in the hall?
Niharika Jain*, an entrepreneur, says, "I had gone to watch a film with my two sisters.
There was a group of guys beside us who were taking loud jibes at every scene. Finally, I
turned to them and very politely requested them to keep their volumes low so that we could
see the film in peace. Bas, uske baad they turned their focus on us. They even started
clicking our pictures on their cellphone camera. People just sat there watching us. I got up
and called the theatre's manager, who just came and changed our seats. It was so
humiliating; no one said a word to them and even the manager had us sit in another row,
when the boys should have been asked to leave the hall. Isn't it an offence to misbehave with
girls? Then why did everyone take it so normally as if nothing had happened?"
Malvika Jalan, a high school student, adds, "Boys keep passing comments on girls in movie
theatres. It disgusts me to no end when the people seated around just sit there as spectators.
Eve teasing is so deeply ingrained in everyone's psyche that people don't bat an eyelid if a
girl is being harassed."

On the streets
If you are a girl who walks to her school, college or workplace, this might be a daily ordeal
for you. Girls have to live with the fact that once they are on the streets, they will be ogled at,
hooted and whistled at, passed undignified comments on, or even groped by a speeding
biker or a car driver. It doesn't matter if there's a police chowki right at the other end of the
road or the fact that there are traffic cops on duty. Kanika Bisht, a medical practitioner,
says, "It won't be any better even if you are walking in a group. But if a girl is walking on the
road all by herself, it gives a licence to these lecherous men. When a girl is being harassed in
public, it should be the social responsibility of people around to stand for her. I have raised
my voice in support of girls in such situations, but I don't know what's wrong with people,
especially men, in our society? If everyone will look the other way in such situations, it will
only encourage these b***ards."
Public transport
City buses are often jam-packed at office hours and the best excuse for men to bump into at
a female passenger repeatedly and get away by saying, 'kya karein, jagah nahi hai'. "The
other day, I was returning from college and although the bus was crowded, it had enough
room for people to stand properly. There was an uncle who kept bumping into me. It took
me a while to realize that he was trying to feel me up. I turned around and slapped him
tight. While I started shouting at him, some of the female passengers also took my side. But
all the men remained silent. They didn't say a word. The man took advantage of the
situation and got down as soon as the bus slowed a little. Had the men in the bus nabbed
him, he could have been handed over to the police," says Nikita Salgia*, an engineering
student.
Ankita Saraf, a software professional, adds, "If all the commuters join hands, such eve
teasers can easily be taken to task. But they remain mute spectators. The co-passengers
should be ashamed of themselves. Their silence is in a way supporting such hooligans to do
whatever they want to and easily get away. Kyunki koi kuchh bolne waala toh hai nahi, yeh
inn logon ko bhi pata hota hai."
Own vehicle
And if you thought the best solution to avoid molesters teasers is to have your own vehicle, it
won't help either. Namrata Panchal, a sales executive, says, "Girls on two wheelers and cars
are not safe either. Guys will often follow you; overtake your vehicle and then slow down to
start following you all over again. Some of them pass lewd comments while a girl is driving.
For them, we're just soft targets who won't be able to do anything. This happens almost
everyday. And no, I don't work till late at night, this happens in broad daylight when there
are vehicles zipping past left right and centre. I know, people do notice that a girl is being
harassed, but people just drive past. No one is bothered."
Prapti, a college goer, shares, "I learnt a bitter lesson recently when I was driving to college
with a friend riding pillion. Two bikers started following us. I stopped at a crowded tea stall
nearby and told the guys standing there about the bikers. And the reaction we got numbed
me. One of them simply said, 'madam hum police thodhi na hain; ismein hum kya karein?
Aaj kal ke ladke bahut badmaash hote hain'. He was trying to explain to me that guys are
anyway unruly, so it's okay if they are behaving like that. We stood there feeling disgusted
and I had to finally call my father to help us."

Supreme Court on Eve teasing:
2. Eve-Teasing is a euphemism, a conduct which attracts penal action but it is seen, only in one
State, a Statute has been enacted, that is State of Tamil Nadu to contain the same, the consequence
of which may at times drastic. Eve-teasing led to the death of a woman in the year 1998 in the State
of Tamil Nadu which led the Government bringing an ordinance, namely, the Tami Nadu Prohibition
of Eve-Teasing Ordinance, 1998, which later became an Act, namely, the Tamil Nadu Prohibition
of Eve-Teasing Act, 1998 [for short the Eve-Teasing Act]. The Statement of Objects and Reasons
of the Eve-Teasing Act reads as follows:
public places has been a perennial problem. Recently, incidents of eve-teasing leading to serious
injuries to, and even death of a woman have come to the notice of the Government. The Government
are of the view that eve-teasing is a menace to society as a whole and has to be eradicated. With
this in view, the Government decided to prohibit eve-teasing in the State of Tamil Nadu.
reported for duty on that date at 8.30 PM at the Courtallam Season Police out post. At about 11.00
PM he visited the Tenkasi bus stand in a drunken state and misbehaved and eve-teased a married
lady, who was waiting along with her husband, to board a bus. The respondent approached that
lady with a dubious intention and threatened both husband and wife stating that he would book a
case against the husband unless the lady accompanied him. Further, he had disclosed his identity as
a police man. Both husband and wife got panic and complained to a police man, namely, Head
Constable Adiyodi (No.1368) who was standing along with Head Constable Peter (No.1079) of
Tenkasi Police Station on the opposite side of the bus-stand. They were on night duty at the bus
stand. They rushed to the spot and took the respondent into custody and brought him to Tenkasi
Police Station along with the husband and wife. Following that, a complaint No.625/1999 was
registered on 10.7.1999 at that Police Station against the respondent under Section 509 of the
Indian Penal Code and under Section 4 of the Eve-teasing
ii) Highly reprehensible conduct in eve-teasing Pitchammal (44/1999) W/o. Vanamamalai of
Padmaneri in the presence of her husband and having approached her with a dubious intention on
9.7.1999 at 23.00 hrs. and thereby getting involved in a criminal case in Tenkasi P.S. Cr. No.
625/1999 under Section 509 IPC and Section 4 of the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Eve-
TeasingOrdinance Act, 1998 and


Supreme Court on Eve Teasing:
In a bid to curb eve-teasing the Supreme Court has directed all States and the Union Territories to
depute plain-clothed women officers at public places bus stands, railway stations, metro stations,
cinema theatres, shopping malls, etc.
Giving a series of directions, a Bench of Justices K.S. Radhakrishnan and Dipak Misra said: Eve-
teasing today has become a pernicious, horrid and disgusting practice. More and more girls and
women go to educational institutions, workplaces, etc, and their protection is of extreme importance
to a civilised and cultured society. The experiences of women and girlchildren in overcrowded buses,
metros, trains, etc, are horrendous, and a painful ordeal.
Writing the judgment, while allowing a Tamil Nadu appeal against the acquittal of policeman S.
Samuthiram, who was accused of teasing a couple, Justice Radhakrishnan said: Parliament is
currently considering the Protection of Women against Sexual Harassment at Workplace Bill, 2010,
which is intended to protect female workers at most workplaces. Provisions of that Bill are not
sufficient to curb eve teasing. Before undertaking suitable legislation to curb eve-teasing, it is
necessary to take at least some urgent measures so that it can be curtailed to some extent.
The Bench said: Eve-teasing is a euphemism, a conduct which attracts penal action but it is seen
[that] only in Tamil Nadu a statute has been created to contain the same, the consequence of which
may at times be drastic. Eve-teasing led to the death of a woman in 1998 in Tamil Nadu which led to
the government bringing an ordinance, namely, the Tami Nadu Prohibition of Eve Teasing
Ordinance, 1998, which later became an Act, namely, the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Eve-Teasing
Act, 1998.
The Bench gave the following directions: a) There will be a direction to the State governments and
the Union Territories to install CCTV in strategic positions which itself would be a deterrent and if
detected, the offender could be caught.
b) Persons in charge of educational institutions, places of worship, cinema theatres, railway stations
and bus stands have to take steps they deem fit to prevent eve-teasing within their precincts and, on
a complaint being made, they must pass on the information to the nearest police station, or the
Womens Help Centre.
c) Where either passengers or persons in-charge of a public service vehicle indulge in eve-teasing, the
crew shall, on a complaint made by the aggrieved person, take the vehicle to the nearest police
station and give information to the police. Failure to do so should lead to cancellation of the permit
to ply.
d) The State governments and Union Territories are directed to establish Womens Helpline in
various cities and towns, so as to curb eve-teasing within three months.
e) Suitable boards cautioning against eve-teasing should be exhibited in the precincts of educational
institutions, bus stands, railway stations, cinema theatres, parties, beaches, public service vehicles,
places of worship, etc.
f) Responsibility is also on passers-by who should report such incidents to the nearest police station
or to the Womens Helpline.
g) The State governments and the Union Territories should take effective measures by issuing
suitable instructions to authorities including the District Collectors and the Superintendent of Police
on effective and proper measures to curb eve-teasing.