- Staring at a woman colleague's body is unethical but not voyeurism under IPC Section 354C
- Voyeurism involves watching or capturing private acts with a reasonable expectation of privacy
- The court ruled office staring does not meet legal criteria for voyeurism offense
Staring at a woman colleague's body is unethical behaviour but does not constitute the offense of "voyeurism", the Bombay High Court held in a ruling on Saturday.
Justice Amit Borkar held that such actions are morally wrong but do not meet the legal criteria under Section 354C of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
The provision defines and punishes the offence of voyeurism, which involves watching, capturing or disseminating images of a woman engaging in a private act where she has a reasonable expectation of privacy. It applies to situations where intimate body parts are exposed, a woman is using a lavatory, or performing a sexual act not usually done in public. Staring in an office environment does not fit this category.
Based on this observation, the court filed an FIR filed against an insurance company executive, noting that law cannot be stretched beyond plain words. Continuing the case would be an abuse of the legal process, the court noted.
The complainant had alleged that during meetings, the accused did not maintain eye contact and instead stared at her body parts and made inappropriate comments. The company's internal complaints committee (ICC) had previously cleared the accused in this matter.
