The Kerala High Court on Wednesday ruled that people who pay for sexual services in brothels can be prosecuted under the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956 (ITP Act). The court said that making such payments counts as “inducing prostitution.”

Justice VG Arun emphasised that sex workers should not be treated as commodities and that people seeking their services are not merely “customers” but active participants in exploitation.

“A person availing the services of a sex worker in a brothel cannot be called a customer. The payment made serves as an inducement, forcing the sex worker to act against their will, often under conditions of trafficking and coercion,” the Court said.

Case behind the ruling

The ruling came from a 2021 police raid in Peroorkad, Thiruvananthapuram. Investigations revealed that two individuals were managing a brothel, procuring women for prostitution, and collecting payments. While the brothel operators were charged under Sections 3 and 4 of the ITP Act (running a brothel and living off prostitution earnings), one petitioner was also charged under Section 5(1)(d) (inducing a person into prostitution) and Section 7 (engaging in prostitution in or near public places).

The petitioner argued that he was just a customer and that paying for services did not amount to inducement. However, the prosecution maintained that liability should be based on the trial court’s findings.

The Kerala High Court clarified that while Sections 3 and 4 apply to brothel operators, seeking sexual services in a brothel falls under Section 5(1)(d) as inducement.

"If such a person is called a customer, it undermines the very purpose of the Act, which is to prevent human trafficking and protect those coerced into prostitution," the Court noted.

The charges against the petitioner under Sections 3 and 4 were dismissed, but the prosecution under Sections 5(1)(d) and 7 of the ITP Act was upheld.