Legal Provisions for Male Victims of Sexual Offences in India: A Need for Inclusive Justice

Legal Provisions for Male Victims of Sexual Offences in India: A Need for Inclusive Justice. Sexual violence is a grave violation of human dignity, affecting individuals regardless of gender, age, or background. While Indian law has made significant strides in protecting women and children from sexual offences, male victims of sexual violence continue to face legal invisibility, social stigma, and lack of clear remedies. The absence of a comprehensive, gender-neutral legal framework for adult male victims raises important questions about equality, justice, and the need for reform.

Understanding the Existing Legal Framework

India’s legal system, particularly the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and special legislation such as the POCSO Act, focuses primarily on protecting women and children from sexual offences. However, when it comes to adult male victims, the provisions are either limited, indirect, or altogether absent.

1. Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012

One of the few gender-neutral legislations in India, the POCSO Act provides protection to all children under the age of 18, regardless of gender. It recognizes a wide range of offences including:

• Penetrative and non-penetrative sexual assault
• Sexual harassment
• Aggravated sexual assault
• Use of children for pornographic purposes

POCSO mandates child-friendly procedures, mandatory reporting of offences, and speedy trials. Male children are fully protected under this Act, making it a crucial legal safeguard for boys facing abuse.

2. Bhartiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS) – Limited Recourse for Adult Males

When it comes to adult male victims, the BNS offers only limited remedies, and most key provisions are gender-specific, recognizing only women as victims.

Section 63 – Rape

Section 63 of the BNS defines rape as a crime committed by a man against a woman. It continues to use gendered language and mirrors the definition previously contained in Section 375 of the IPC.

• The law recognizes only women as victims and only men as perpetrators.

• There is no recognition of male or transgender persons as potential victims of rape.

• Similarly, the law does not contemplate the possibility of women or persons of other genders as perpetrators of such an offence.

As a result, adult male victims of penetrative sexual assault are excluded from seeking justice under this clause.

Sections 64 to 67 – Outraging Modesty and Sexual Harassment

Sections 64 to 67 of the BNS deal with offences such as:

• Assault or use of criminal force with intent to outrage the modesty of a woman

• Sexual harassment

• Disrobing a woman without consent

• Stalking and voyeurism

Each of these clauses, much like Sections 354 to 354D of the IPC, is framed exclusively for the protection of women. The language of the law explicitly identifies women as the aggrieved party and does not acknowledge the possibility of such offences being committed against men or transgender persons.

This creates a significant legal gap. Adult male victims of similar forms of harassment or abuse have no remedy under these provisions.

Section 69 – Unnatural Sexual Offences

Section 69 of the BNS replaces the repealed Section 377 of the IPC, which previously criminalized “unnatural offences.” Following the Supreme Court’s decision in Navtej Singh Johar v. Union of India (2018), consensual same-sex relations were decriminalized. The BNS reflects this change.

Section 69 criminalizes non-consensual acts of carnal intercourse or sexual acts against the order of nature with any person.

• This is a gender-neutral provision.

• It applies irrespective of the gender of the victim or the accused.

• It provides a limited but essential remedy for adult male victims of non-consensual sexual acts, such as forced anal or oral sex.

While this clause offers some scope for legal action by male victims, it does not equate to the comprehensive protection afforded to women under the rape and sexual assault provisions.

Section 123 – Criminal Intimidation

Section 123, equivalent to Section 506 of the IPC, deals with the offence of criminal intimidation.

• This provision is not gender-specific.

• It can be invoked by any person who is threatened with harm to their body, reputation, or property.

• In the context of sexual offences, if a male victim is being threatened or coerced into silence, this clause can offer partial redress.

However, it does not directly address the sexual component of the abuse and hence is not a substitute for specific legal provisions.

Section 124 – Insulting the Modesty of a Woman

Section 124 of the BNS is a reproduction of Section 509 of the IPC. It criminalizes the act of using words, gestures, or exhibition of any object intended to insult the modesty of a woman.

• • This provision is exclusively designed for women.

  • It does not offer any protection to male victims subjected to similar verbal abuse or humiliation.

  • Consequently, men experiencing such forms of sexual harassment have no legal recourse under this provision.

3. Workplace Harassment – The POSH Act

The POSH Act, 2013 (Prevention of Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace) is specifically designed to protect women. It defines the “aggrieved woman” as the complainant and excludes men from its scope.

Although some companies have internal gender-neutral policies, there is no statutory protection for male employees who face sexual harassment at the workplace. This legal gap exposes male victims to a lack of institutional redressal mechanisms.

4. Cyber Crimes and Digital Harassment

The Information Technology (IT) Act, 2000 provides some relief to male victims of cyber harassment:

• Section 66E: Punishes violation of privacy.
• Section 67: Punishes the publication or transmission of obscene material.
• Section 67A & 67B: Deal with sexually explicit content and child pornography.

These provisions are gender-neutral and can be used by male victims to address online sexual exploitation.

5. Juvenile Justice Act, 2015

Male children who are victims of abuse, neglect, or exploitation may be treated as children in need of care and protection under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act. This supports the broader child protection system, working in parallel with POCSO.

The Need for Reform

While POCSO covers male children, the absence of clear, statutory protection for adult male victims of sexual offences reflects a critical gap in India’s criminal justice system. In recent years, civil society groups, legal scholars, and activists have called for gender-neutral reforms, particularly:

• Expanding the definition of rape to include male and transgender victims
• Making sexual harassment laws at the workplace gender-inclusive
• Introducing gender-neutral sexual offences legislation, separate from or as an extension of existing IPC provisions

Conclusion

Sexual violence is not a gendered experience—it is a human rights violation. Male victims, like all survivors, deserve dignity, protection, and access to justice. India’s legal framework currently offers only patchy protection to male victims, particularly after they reach adulthood. A modern, inclusive, and gender-neutral legal response is urgently needed to ensure that every victim, regardless of gender, is heard, believed, and protected.

Until such reforms are realized, social awareness, institutional sensitivity, and organizational policy changes can play a crucial role in supporting male survivors and advocating for equality under the law. Legal Provisions for Male Victims of Sexual Offences in India: A Need for Inclusive Justice

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