An assistant professor of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) had accused an officiating director of causing her mental agony and emotional suffering by scolding her loudly at work! She filed a criminal case against the said official in 2022 saying that his reprimand had worsened her post-Covid-19 health issues. However, the Supreme Court quashed the case, ruling that such admonishments or reprimands at work are part of administrative duties and cannot be considered a deliberate attempt to insult someone or disturb the peace of the workplace. As per the apex court, a reprimand at work cannot form the basis for criminal proceedings.
The bench comprising justices Sanjay Karol and Sandeep Mehta stated that there was no evidence that the admonishment had any criminal basis, reports Law Trend. It was simply a reprimand, and rude speech is not sufficient proof to initiate criminal proceedings under Section 504 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), which has since been replaced by Section 352 under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) effective July 2024. Allegation of ‘intentional insult’ will need a lot more evidence than simply rude words or a loud reprimand.
The Court dismissed the allegations has mere speculations without any concrete proof to file criminal charges. The Court also referred to similar cases in the past where it was observed that intentional insult, under Section 504 IPC, can be alleged only when there is a purposeful attempt at the same “with the knowledge that it might provoke a criminal response.”
