Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 · Chapter V: Of Offences against Woman and Child · Of sexual offences
Section 68: Sexual intercourse by a person in authority
In plain words
A person in authority who abuses that position to induce or seduce a woman in their custody, charge or premises into sexual intercourse, where it does not amount to rape, faces rigorous imprisonment of at least five years and up to ten years, and a fine.
- It covers people in a position of authority or trust, public servants, jail, remand home and institution superintendents or managers, and hospital management and staff.
A simplified explanation, prepared with AI assistance from the official text below and checked automatically against it for numbers and cross-references. The official text is the law and prevails over this summary. Not legal advice.
Official text
Whoever, being—-
(a) in a position of authority or in a fiduciary relationship; or
(b) a public servant; or
(c) superintendent or manager of a jail, remand home or other place of custody established by or under any law for the time being in force, or a women's or children's institution; or
(d) on the management of a hospital or being on the staff of a hospital,
abuses such position or fiduciary relationship to induce or seduce any woman either in his custody or under his charge or present in the premises to have sexual intercourse with him, such sexual intercourse not amounting to the offence of rape, shall be punished with rigorous imprisonment of either description for a term which shall not be less than five years, but which may extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to fine.
Explanation 1.—- In this section, "sexual intercourse" shall mean any of the acts mentioned in clauses (a) to (d) of section 63.
Explanation 2.—- For the purposes of this section, Explanation 1 to section 63 shall also be applicable.
Explanation 3.—- "Superintendent", in relation to a jail, remand home or other place of custody or a women's or children's institution, includes a person holding any other office in such jail, remand home, place or institution by virtue of which such person can exercise any authority or control over its inmates.
Explanation 4.—-The expressions "hospital" and "women's or children's institution" shall respectively have the same meanings as in clauses (b) and (d) of the Explanation to sub-section (2) of section 64.
Corresponding sections were matched by comparing the wording of both official texts, and for the IPC and BNS, also against a published correspondence table. Wording, punishments and structure often changed, so read both sections before relying on the match.
Source: India Code (indiacode.gov.in), the consolidated text published by the Legislative Department, Government of India. Text as updated on India Code on 25 August 2026. Words in square brackets [ ] were inserted or substituted by later amending Acts, and *** marks words omitted by an amendment. The amendment footnotes are not reproduced here. Official text on India Code.
Supreme Court judgments citing the section 68
No Supreme Court judgment in our database cites this section yet.