Prostitution Prostitution laws in Indiaभारत
Under the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act 1956 (ITPA), an adult selling sex in private is not committing an offence. The Act punishes keeping or managing a brothel (section 3), knowingly living on the earnings of another person's prostitution (section 4), procuring or inducing a person into prostitution (section 5), prostitution in premises within 200 metres of places of worship, schools, hospitals and similar places or in notified areas, for both parties (section 7), and soliciting in or within sight of a public place (section 8). On 19 May 2022, in Budhadev Karmaskar v State of West Bengal, the Supreme Court used Article 142 of the Constitution to direct the States to implement several recommendations of its panel on sex workers' dignity. In May 2026, in Prajwala v Union of India, it held that rescued adults cannot be made to undergo rehabilitation against their will.
Legal model
Legal, organisation banned. Selling and buying are legal, but brothels, procuring and organising are criminal offences.
The Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act 1956 does not make selling sex as such an offence. It criminalises brothel keeping, living on the earnings of another person's prostitution, procuring, prostitution in or near public places and soliciting in public. The Supreme Court stated in 2022 that "voluntary sex work is not illegal and only running the brothel is unlawful". Because the public-place and soliciting offences reach the seller (and, near public places, the buyer), India sits at the restrictive end of the abolitionist model.[1][2]
At a glance
| Question | Status | In short |
|---|---|---|
| Selling sexual services | Restricted Breach: criminal offence | Selling sex in private is not an offence. It becomes one in premises within 200 metres of a place of public worship, educational institution, hospital, nursing home or other notified public place, or in an area the State has notified (up to three months' imprisonment), and when soliciting in or within sight of a public place (up to six months or a fine of up to 500 rupees on a first conviction).[1][2] |
| Buying sexual services | Restricted Breach: criminal offence | Paying an adult for sex is not a general offence. Section 7(1) applies to "the person with whom such prostitution is carried on", so a buyer commits an offence in premises within 200 metres of the listed public places or in a notified area. Buying sex from a child or minor carries heavy penalties.[1] |
| Brothels and managed venues | Illegal Criminal offence | Keeping or managing a brothel, or assisting in doing so, carries one to three years' rigorous imprisonment and a fine on first conviction. Tenants, occupiers and landlords who knowingly allow premises to be used as a brothel are also liable. A "brothel" includes a place used for the mutual gain of two or more sex workers.[1][2] |
| Third parties profiting (procuring / pimping) | Illegal Criminal offence | Any person over 18 who knowingly lives wholly or partly on another person's earnings from prostitution faces up to two years' imprisonment or a fine. Living with a sex worker, controlling her movements or acting as a tout or pimp creates a rebuttable presumption of the offence. Procuring or inducing a person into prostitution, even with consent, carries three to seven years' rigorous imprisonment.[1] |
| Advertising sexual services | Restricted Breach: criminal offence | The ITPA has no offence aimed at advertising as such. Section 8 punishes attracting attention or soliciting for prostitution in or within sight of a public place, by words, gestures or "otherwise". Third parties who publish offers on behalf of sex workers risk the procuring and living-on-earnings offences.[1] |
The law in detail
Selling sexual services
Selling sex in private is not an offence. It becomes one in premises within 200 metres of a place of public worship, educational institution, hospital, nursing home or other notified public place, or in an area the State has notified (up to three months' imprisonment), and when soliciting in or within sight of a public place (up to six months or a fine of up to 500 rupees on a first conviction).[1][2]
The Act defines prostitution as "the sexual exploitation or abuse of persons for commercial purposes" (section 2(f)). Courts have read the Act as not penalising prostitution itself; the Supreme Court's 2022 order records that "voluntary sex work is not illegal". Section 8 covers attracting attention "by words, gestures, wilful exposure", including from a window or balcony, and soliciting or loitering for prostitution. Its proviso sets a different penalty, seven days to three months' imprisonment, when the offence is committed by a man.
Note. The official India Code text (indiacode.nic.in) did not respond, so the provisions were read from the copy of the Act published by Punjab Police. That copy matches the statute's section structure.
Checked 30 October 2026
Buying sexual services
Paying an adult for sex is not a general offence. Section 7(1) applies to "the person with whom such prostitution is carried on", so a buyer commits an offence in premises within 200 metres of the listed public places or in a notified area. Buying sex from a child or minor carries heavy penalties.[1]
Note. Offences under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023 against engaging trafficked persons for sexual exploitation were not checked against the official text.
Checked 30 October 2026
Brothels and managed venues
Keeping or managing a brothel, or assisting in doing so, carries one to three years' rigorous imprisonment and a fine on first conviction. Tenants, occupiers and landlords who knowingly allow premises to be used as a brothel are also liable. A "brothel" includes a place used for the mutual gain of two or more sex workers.[1][2]
Section 2(a) defines a brothel as any house, room, conveyance or place used "for purposes of sexual exploitation or abuse for the gain of another person or for the mutual gain of two or more prostitutes". Two sex workers sharing premises can therefore fall within the definition. Under section 3(2-A), knowledge is presumed once a newspaper reports that a search found the premises being used for prostitution. Section 18 allows a magistrate to order the closure of brothels near public places.
Checked 30 October 2026
Third parties profiting (procuring / pimping)
Any person over 18 who knowingly lives wholly or partly on another person's earnings from prostitution faces up to two years' imprisonment or a fine. Living with a sex worker, controlling her movements or acting as a tout or pimp creates a rebuttable presumption of the offence. Procuring or inducing a person into prostitution, even with consent, carries three to seven years' rigorous imprisonment.[1]
Checked 30 October 2026
Advertising sexual services
The ITPA has no offence aimed at advertising as such. Section 8 punishes attracting attention or soliciting for prostitution in or within sight of a public place, by words, gestures or "otherwise". Third parties who publish offers on behalf of sex workers risk the procuring and living-on-earnings offences.[1]
Confidence: low. Whether section 8 reaches online advertisements was not established; the Act defines a public place as one "intended for use by, or accessible to, the public". The Information Technology Act 2000 (obscenity offences and website blocking) could not be opened on an official portal and is not assessed here.
Checked 30 October 2026
Key legislation
| Law | What it does here | In force |
|---|---|---|
| The Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956 (Act No. 104 of 1956) Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act 1956 (Act 104 of 1956, as amended) s. 2 · s. 3 · s. 4 · s. 5 · s. 7 · s. 8 · s. 17 · s. 18 | The main prostitution statute: brothels, living on earnings, procuring, public-place prostitution, soliciting, closure of brothels and protective homes.[1] | |
| Budhadev Karmaskar v. The State of West Bengal & Ors., Criminal Appeal No. 135/2010, Record of Proceedings, 19-05-2022 Budhadev Karmaskar v State of West Bengal, Criminal Appeal No. 135 of 2010, order of 19 May 2022 | Supreme Court directions under Article 142 on sex workers' dignity, police conduct, media identification and Aadhaar identity cards, to apply until Parliament legislates.[2] | 19 May 2022 |
| Rehabilitation as a Facet of Article 21: Prajwala v Union of India (2026 INSC 609), SCO.LR report Prajwala v Union of India, 2026 INSC 609 (29 May 2026) | Supreme Court judgment recognising a right to rehabilitation for trafficking survivors and setting binding guidelines on rescue and rehabilitation, including the consent of adult victims to protective custody.[3] | 29 May 2026 |
Timeline
- 1956Parliament enacts Act 104 of 1956 to implement the 1950 New York Convention for the suppression of traffic in persons; it was originally titled the Suppression of Immoral Traffic in Women and Girls Act and later renamed the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act.[1]
- 19 July 2011The Supreme Court sets up a panel chaired by Pradip Ghosh on preventing trafficking, rehabilitating sex workers who wish to leave sex work, and conditions for sex workers to live with dignity.[2]
- 19 May 2022In Budhadev Karmaskar, the Supreme Court invokes Article 142 to give effect to the panel's recommendations until Parliament legislates. The Union government had reservations about some recommendations, so States were told to act in "strict compliance" with those it accepted (paras 2, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 9: survivor care, review of protective homes, police sensitisation, media identification, condoms not as evidence, legal literacy). The rest, including the no-arrest-in-raids and police non-interference paragraphs, were deferred.[2]
- 29 May 2026In Prajwala v Union of India (2026 INSC 609), the Supreme Court holds that trafficking survivors have a fundamental right to rehabilitation under Articles 21 and 23 and issues a Victim Protection Plan. Commentators report it requires a magistrate to ask a rescued adult whether she sells sex voluntarily and whether she wants protective custody.[3][4]
Sources
- The Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956 (Act No. 104 of 1956). Punjab Police, Barnala (legal corner copy of the Act). legislation · accessed 30 October 2026
- Budhadev Karmaskar v. The State of West Bengal & Ors., Criminal Appeal No. 135/2010, Record of Proceedings, 19-05-2022. Supreme Court of India, 19 May 2022. case law · accessed 30 October 2026
- Rehabilitation as a Facet of Article 21: Prajwala v Union of India (2026 INSC 609), SCO.LR report. Supreme Court Observer, 29 May 2026. case law · accessed 30 October 2026
- Supreme Court Upholds Rule of Consent and Human Rights: Detention and Rehabilitation Cannot Be Imposed on Sex Workers and Victims of Sex Trafficking Against Their Will. People's Union for Civil Liberties, 1 July 2026. ngo · accessed 30 October 2026