The Supreme Court did not consider necrofilia to be a crime, Section 375 of the IPC applies only to living persons

New Delhi

The Supreme Court said that since the Penal Act does not consider necrophylia a crime, he cannot interfere in the High Court’s partial order, in which the accused had sex with his body after killing the deceased.

A bench of Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia and Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah was hearing a petition challenging the order of the Karnataka High Court, in which the accused was acquitted of rape charges to have sex with the dead body, but the crime of murder Keep the conviction under The state government filed the current SLP here.
The High Court acquitted the person from the charge of rape, but the murder was sentenced. In this case, the Supreme Court said that the Indian Penal Code (IPC) has not considered sexuality with the body.
Petition against Karnataka High Court order

The bench of Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia and Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah of the Supreme Court was hearing a petition filed against the Karnataka High Court order. In this case, Additional Advocate General Aman Panwar on behalf of the Government of Karnataka argued that the word ‘body’ in Section 375 (C) of the IPC should also be considered as dead body. He also said that under the definition of rape, the provision has said that if a woman cannot agree then it will be considered rape. On the basis of this argument, the dead body cannot give consent, so this crime should fall under the category of rape. However, the Supreme Court refused to accept the plea and said that Necrophilia is not a crime under the Indian Penal Code, so it is not willing to intervene in the High Court order.

What did the Karnataka High Court say?

The Karnataka High Court had clarified that sex with the dead body cannot be considered rape, as sections 375 and 377 of the IPC apply to living humans only. After studying sections 375 and 377 deeply, it is clear that the dead body cannot be considered as ‘person’ or ‘human’. Therefore, no crime is created under these sections and the accused cannot be punished under Section 376 of the IPC. The High Court also acknowledged that Necrophilia is a serious problem and Parliament should enact a law to declare it a crime. In a case, the Chhattisgarh High Court also said in December that if a sex crime is committed with a dead woman or girl, it cannot be considered a offense under Section 375 (rape) or POCSO Act of the IPC.

Need to change law

Several incidents of sexual relations with the bodies of women in hospitals and morgue have been reported, but there is no special law for such cases in India. Necrophylia is a psychosexual disorder. It is the right time to amend Section 377 of the IPC to maintain the dignity of the dead individual, especially women and declare necrofilia as a crime, as has been done in the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand and South Africa. The matter highlights the need to amend the Indian Penal Code to protect the dignity and rights of the dead person.