The Hierarchy of Victimhood: Statutory Inertia and Non-Female Erasure under the BNS

To view the crime of sexual violence exclusively as a male perpetrator violating a female victim is an injustice to those whose stories do not fit this rigid paradigm. This paper evaluates the systemic underreporting, profound social stigma, and institutional barriers to justice experienced by male and LGBTQ+ survivors of sexual harassment and molestation in India. Utilising a qualitative socio-legal methodology, this study examines the historic transition from the Indian Penal Code (IPC), 1860, to the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, critiquing the legislative choice to retain gender-asymmetric definitions of sexual assault under Section 63 of the BNS. By analysing landmark constitutional jurisprudence, including Naz Foundation and Navtej Singh Johar, alongside secondary data from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) and human rights advocacy reports, the article maps how non-female survivors are left in a legal and psychosocial vacuum. The findings highlight how heteronormative societal expectations and rigid statutory architectures actively perpetuate an unequal hierarchy of victimhood. Ultimately, this research advocates for a comprehensive, intersectional, and gender-neutral overhaul of Indian primary criminal statutes to guarantee equal protection under the law for all survivors, irrespective of gender identity or sexual orientation.