Section 8

The IPC was drafted in the 1860s, when English legal drafting conventionally used masculine pronouns as a shorthand for 'any person,' regardless of actual gender. Rather than rewrite every section with 'he or she,' the drafters (led by Lord Macaulay's Law Commission) added this interpretation clause so the whole Code could be read gender-neutrally without needing repetitive phrasing throughout. It reflects a drafting technique common in 19th-century statutes, not a statement about gender roles.

Courts have generally treated Section 8 as a straightforward interpretive rule, applying it to read gender-neutral meaning into provisions using 'he,' 'his,' or 'him' unless the specific offence is explicitly limited to one sex by its own wording (for example, historically some provisions expressly named only men or only women as offenders or victims). Courts have not treated this section as controversial; it functions in the background to keep the Code's language broadly applicable.

• Myth: Section 8 means the IPC only punishes men, since it keeps saying 'he.'
  Fact: Section 8 exists precisely to prevent that reading — it clarifies that 'he' covers people of any gender unless a specific section says otherwise.
• Myth: This section reflects a policy that men and women should be treated differently under the IPC.
  Fact: It's a grammatical/drafting convention, not a substantive rule about gender roles or treatment.