Why in News ? Two complaints have been filed against 46-year-old Independent candidate in the fray for the Varanasi Lok Sabha seat.

• The 29-year-old shiva Kumar from Rajasthan, had filed the nomination as an Independent candidate.
• He has been charged under IPC sections 419 (punishment for cheating by personation), 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 506 (criminal intimidation.)

 About Section 419 :

Key points:

Act: Whoever cheats by personation shall be punished.

Cheating: Defined in Section 415 of the IPC as deceiving someone dishonestly, inducing them to deliver property or alter their position in expectation of unlawful gain or causing them a loss.

Personation: Impersonating another person by words, conduct, clothing, or any other means.

Punishment:

• Imprisonment of up to 3 years ,Fine or both.

Example:

• A person pretends to be a doctor and convinces someone to pay them for fake medical treatment. This would be cheating by personation.

Important Points:

• There must be an intention to deceive and cause wrongful gain or loss.
• The offense is cognizable – police can investigate without a warrant.
• It is bailable – accused can be released on bail.
• It is triable by any Magistrate.

It is compoundable with the permission of the court – the victim can choose to settle the case outside of court.

About IPC section 506:

Definition: Whoever uses threatening words or gestures with the intention of causing alarm to someone or to induce them to do something they wouldn’t otherwise do, or to abstain from doing something they have a right to do, commits criminal intimidation.

Punishment: The punishment varies depending on the severity of the threat:

Simple Criminal Intimidation: Up to 2 years imprisonment, or fine, or both. (This applies if the threat is not to cause death, grievous hurt, etc.)

Serious Criminal Intimidation: Up to 7 years imprisonment, or fine, or both. (This applies if the threat is to cause death, grievous hurt, destruction of property by fire, an offense punishable with death or life imprisonment, or to impute unchastity to a woman)

Key Points:

• The threat must be intentional and directed at a specific person.
• The threat must cause reasonable apprehension or fear in the mind of the victim.
• The threat can be verbal, written, or through gestures.

Examples of Criminal Intimidation:

• Threatening someone with physical violence.
• Threatening to damage someone’s property.
• Threatening to expose someone’s embarrassing information.
• Threatening to harm someone’s family or loved ones.