This law only applies if the person is actually harmed.

The threat itself is the crime — the law punishes the intimidation meant to stop someone from seeking protection, even if no physical harm ever occurs.

This section covers threats to hurt public servants directly.

This section is about threatening a private person to stop them from approaching a public servant for protection — not about threatening the public servant themselves.

Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023

Section 225

Threat of injury to induce person to refrain from applying for protection to public

Whoever holds out any threat of injury to any person for the purpose of inducing that person to refrain or desist from making a legal application for protection against any injury to any public servant legally empowered as such to give such protection, or to cause such protection to be given, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to one year, or with fine, or with both.§

Why this exists

This provision protects a person's basic right to seek help and protection from lawful authorities without being intimidated into silence. It targets situations where someone tries to block another person's access to legal remedies or official protection by threatening them, recognizing that access to protection from public servants is a right that must be safeguarded from private coercion. This mirrors an older provision from the Indian Penal Code, 1860, carried forward with updated numbering in the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.

Common misconceptions

Myth: This law only applies if the person is actually harmed.
Fact: The threat itself is the crime — the law punishes the intimidation meant to stop someone from seeking protection, even if no physical harm ever occurs.
Myth: This section covers threats to hurt public servants directly.
Fact: This section is about threatening a private person to stop them from approaching a public servant for protection — not about threatening the public servant themselves.