Punishment for Intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace in India

Intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace – Section 504 of Indian Penal Code:

Whoever intentionally insults and thereby gives provocation to any person, intending or knowing it to be likely that such provocation will cause him to break the public peace or to commit any other offence, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to two years or with fine or with both.

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Section 504, I.P.C., contemplates an intentional insult to any person leading to provocation or at least intending or knowing it to be likely that such provocation will cause the person to whom the intentional insult is offered to break the public peace or to commit any other offence.

The provision clearly visualises that the intentional insult will further have in its background the intention or knowledge that such intentional insult would either provoke the person to whom it is offered, to break public peace or to commit any other offence.

It is not mere insult that is contemplated by Section 504. The ingredients essential for conviction under this section are three-fold Firstly intentional insult, secondly provocation there from, and thirdly intention or knowledge that such provocation is likely to cause the person so insulted to break the public peace or commit any other offence. Simply taking a photograph is not a disrespectful conduct nor offers any indignity nor was it such a provocation as to induce the complainant to break the public peace or to commit any other offence.

Ingredients:

Mere abuse does not come within the purview of Section 504. This section comprises of the following ingredients:

(1) Intentional insult;

(2) The insult must be such as to give provocation to the person insulted; and

(3) The accused must intend to know that such provocation would cause him to break the public peace or to commit any other offence.

The offence under this section can be made out only on proof of the aforesaid three elements including intention or knowledge of the offender that provocation given by him will cause the complainant to break the public peace beyond all reasonable doubt either by positive evidence or by such evidence from which those facts can be conclusively inferred.

Mere abuse may not come within the purview of Section 504. But, the words in a particular case might amount to an intentional insult provoking the person insulted to commit a breach of the public peace or to commit any other offence.

If abusive language is used intentionally and is of such a nature as would in the ordinary course of events lead the person insulted to break the peace or to commit an offence under the law, the case is not taken away from the purview of the section merely because the insulted person did not actually break the peace or commit any offence having exercised self-control or having been subjected to object terror by the offender.

In judging whether particular abusive language is attracted by Section 504, I.P.C., the Court has to find out what in the ordinary circumstances, would be the effect of the abusive language used and not what the complainant actually did as a result of his peculiar idiosyncrasy or cool temperament or sense of discipline.

It is the ordinary general nature of the abusive language that is the test for considering whether the abusive language is an intentional insult likely to provoke the person insulted to commit a breach of the peace and not the particular conduct or temperament of the complainant.

Mere abuse, discourtesy, rudeness or insolence, may not amount to an intentional insult within the meaning of Section 504, I.P.C., if it does not have the necessary element of being likely to incite the person insulted to commit a breach of the peace or an offence and the other element of the accused intending to provoke the person insulted is to commit a breach of the peace or knowing that the person insulted is likely to commit a breach of the peace.

Each case of abusive language shall have to be decided in the light of the facts and circumstances of that case and there cannot be a general proposition that no one commits an offence if he merely uses abusive language against the complainant.

Words, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman (simple imprisonment upto 1 year or fine or both) (Section 509).

There are other provisions also in the Code relating to insult. The following is an exhaustive list of the offences in which insult is involved:

(1) Destroying, damaging or defiling any place of worship or any object held sacred by any class of person with intent to insult their religion (Section 295).

(2) Deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs (Section 295-A).

(3) Trespassing on burial place, etc., with the intention of wounding the feelings of any person or insulting the religion of any person (Section 297).

(4) Criminal trespass on property with intent to insult any person in possession thereof (Section 441).

(5) Offence under Section 504.

(6) Offence under Section 509.