Law & Justice

Bombay High Court Upholds Section 75 Charge Against Vishal Ingle Over Transgender Complainant

By Chinmay Gaikwad

The Bombay High Court refused to discharge Vishal Ingle and held that Section 75 of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita applies when the complainant is a transgender person who identifies as a woman. Justice Mehroz Pathan issued the order on November 3. The judge rejected the argument that Section 75 cannot be used because the complainant is transgender, noting that the complainant identifies as a woman and has taken hormone‑changing medication. The FIR alleges that the applicant outraged the modesty of the complainant, who identifies as a woman after hormone therapy. The judge stated that allegations of assault and outraging the modesty of a woman can be sustained when the victim is a transgender person who identifies as a woman. Mr. Ingle, a former Agniveer, was charged under Section 75 and Section 296 of the BNS and under the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019. The judge dismissed the argument that Section 18(D) of the 2019 Act does not apply because the complainant did not have a certificate of identity at the time of the offence. Section 2(k) of the Act allows a person to identify as transgender without a certificate, and Section 5 provides a route to apply for a certificate. The complainant received a certificate of identity on February 12, 2026. The alleged assault occurred on October 28 and October 30, 2025. The judge held that the absence of a certificate at the time of the offence does not bar the use of the 2019 Act. The FIR shows that Section 18(D) was invoked and the allegations fall within the provisions applied to the applicant. The court therefore refused to discharge the accused. Published – November 08, 2026 11:10 am IST