The Karnataka High Court has firmly ruled that criminal acts committed within the premises of a Legislative House are not immune from legal prosecution, emphasizing that legislative privilege cannot be used as a shield for actions that outrage the modesty of women.
Justice M. Nagaprasanna delivered this judgment in the case of Sri C T Ravi vs State by Bagewadi P.S. and Others (CRL.P 791/2025), where BJP legislator CT Ravi sought to quash a criminal case registered against him. He was accused of using derogatory language against Congress MLA Laxmi Hebbalkar during a session at the Karnataka Legislative Council in Belagavi.
The case was registered under Sections 75 and 79 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, which deal with offenses relating to outraging the modesty of a woman. CT Ravi was arrested on December 19, 2024, but was subsequently released on bail. He then approached the court to have the charges dropped.
The High Court, however, refused to quash the proceedings. It highlighted that while Article 194(2) of the Constitution grants immunity to legislators for speeches made in the House, this protection is not absolute. The court noted:
“Spoken word in the Legislature by the Legislators would ordinarily come within the immunity under Article 194(2) of the Constitution of India, but not in certain exceptional circumstances.”
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The judge clarified that judicial review is allowed even when parliamentary privilege is claimed, but only on a case-by-case basis.
Upon examining the complaint and petition, the court emphasized:
Respect and reputation of a woman in any civilized society, shows basic civility... No citizen... can afford to conceive the idea that he can create a hollow in the honour of a woman.
The alleged words that the petitioner has uttered is calling the complainant a ‘prostitute’... The unequivocal and emphatic answer is, a ‘NO’—such speech is not immune from prosecution.
Justice Nagaprasanna pointed out that even though the remarks were made on the floor of the House, they bore no connection to the functioning or business of the legislature. He said:
“The alleged word spoken, if spoken, or gesture made, if made, against a woman, certainly outrages her modesty... can have no nexus to the functioning of the House or no relation to a transaction of the business of the House.”
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In light of these findings, the court held that the criminal complaint could not be dismissed simply because the incident occurred in the Legislature. The judge said:
These acts which eroded the dignity of a woman or outraged her modesty cannot be protected under the parasol of legislator's privilege.
The legislature is not a sanctuary for defamation or gendered invective, rather an institution where robust debate must be tempered with decorum and respect.
