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Authored by: Tanmay Vijay ( Intern at Legal Soch Foundation)
Meta Description: This news is about a matter relating to obscenity under section 294 IPC which was entertained by Kerala High Court.
Keywords: Verbal Abuse, Obscenity, Phone, Retaliation, Complaint
Reports:
According to Kerala High Court rulings, using derogatory language when making a police call does not constitute an obscenity violation under Section 294(b) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
Judge PV Kunhikrishnan made the statement while tossing out a criminal case brought against the petitioner, a 51-year-old lady who was accused of using harsh language in a phone conversation with a Station House Officer.
In this case, the prosecution claimed that the 51-year-old petitioner spoke abusively over the phone to the Alappuzha North Police Station House Officer. The Court stated, "I am of the considered opinion that the offences under Section 294(b), Section 506(i) of the IPC, and Section 120(o) of the Police Act are not made out in this instance, even if the accusation in the final report is accepted in its entirety.
Following her communication with the Alappuzha North Police Station's Station House Officer, a case was filed. The accused woman allegedly used foul words to the police officer on three separate occasions, according to the officer.
Separate from Section 120(o) of the Police Act, the woman was accused of violating Sections 294 (b) (singing, reciting or uttering any obscene song, ballad, or lyrics in or near any public place) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the IPC for her alleged conduct.
However, the woman insisted that it was a fabricated case that was brought against her and that she had simply called the police officer to inquire about the status of a previous complaint she had made about noise pollution.
She countered that when she had sought this information, the policeman had verbally abused her. She also complained about the incident with the police authority.
Using the James Jose v. State of Kerala case as support, Justice Kunhikrishnan held that even if the accusations are found to be accurate, the claimed incident and the words said by the accused woman over the phone would not be considered obscenity under Section 294(b) of the IPC.
It is true that the petitioner allegedly used abusive language when speaking with the de facto complaint over the phone. According to section 294(b) of the IPC, the petitioner's use of abusive language over the phone would not constitute an offence, the court declared.
The High Court also agreed with the preliminary assessment that the criminal action against the woman was brought in response to her complaint against the police officer.
As a result, the Court dismissed the lawsuit. Additionally, it instructed the Chief of District Police to look into how the criminal complaint against the petitioner-woman was submitted.
This kind of incident is unthinkable in our culture on a normal basis. Respect for police authority is constant among the public. Since the defacto complainant may have defaulted, the District Police Chief ought to investigate the filing of this lawsuit against the petitioner and take legal action, if necessary, the Court directed.
MP Prasanth, the public prosecutor, made an appearance on behalf of the state. Before the High Court, the petitioner-woman made an in-person appearance.
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