-Bhushan Raut Introduction The most difficult cases in criminal law are not the ones where the law is silent, but where it speaks and it produces an answer that feels normatively unsatisfying. The Delhi High Court’s order in the Unnao rape case is one such instance. Few cases more starkly demonstrate the abuse of power, … Continue reading Between Text and Purpose: Interpreting “Public Servant” Under POCSO
-Dhruv Madan and Maya Sarmah In Part I of this two-part post, we examined the shifting jurisprudence under Sections 375 and 377 IPC, through the cases of Imran Khan @ Ashok Ratna v. State of U.P. and Mohd. Mustafa & Ors. v. NCT of Delhi. Both these cases take a contradictory stance on whether the … Continue reading From 375 to 377: right to orientation conflicting with right to consent? Part- II
-Dhruv Madan and Maya Sarmah Introduction The law on sexual offences in India has witnessed substantial doctrinal shifts, yet certain judicial interpretations remain anchored in outdated binaries. Despite reforms via the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013 and Navtej Singh Johar v. Union of India, Indian High Courts continue to inconsistently distinguish between ‘natural’ and ‘unnatural’ … Continue reading From 375 to 377: right to orientation conflicting with right to consent? Part- I
-Aarya Dubey & Kush Shanker. INTRODUCTION Recently, in a judgement delivered by the Hon’ble Ram Manohar Narayan Mishra J. of the Allahabad High Court, it was observed that groping breasts, snapping off the girl’s pyjama strings and dragging her beneath the culvert prima facie do not constitute an attempt to rape under the relevant provisions … Continue reading WHO GOT IT WRONG—THE ALLAHABAD HIGH COURT OR US?
-Sharnam Agarwal Introduction Every day in India, 86 women are reported as victims of rape, according to the National Crime Records Bureau [“NCRB”]. Among these harrowing statistics, the most disturbing trend is the 96% increase in child rape cases from 2016 to 2022. A recent judgment by the Rajasthan High Court in Suwalal v. State … Continue reading Beyond Technicalities: A Call for Judicial Sensitivity in Indian Rape Cases
- Vedant Choudhary The Law Commission of India in its 283rd report, titled, ‘Age of Consent under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012’ has recommended against amending the age of consent under the POCSO Act. This negative recommendation comes in light of growing cases of romantic relationships between minors, where de facto … Continue reading The 283rd Law Commission Report – Better If Not Implemented
~By Vasundhara Mehta Introduction Recently, during my time at the chambers of the Hon’ble Mr Justice S. Ravindra Bhat, Judge, Supreme Court of India, I encountered the quagmire posed by consensual adolescent relationships in India. Almost every day at the Apex Court, I would hear the advocates state that the ‘victim’, a minor girl has … Continue reading On POCSO and the Need for a Balancing Act to Navigate the Quandary Posed by Consensual Adolescent Relationships
~By Tanya Verma Necrophilia, characterized by the pursuit of sexual satisfaction through engaging in sexual acts with corpses, has undergone a significant transformation in societal perception. The recent acquittal by the Karnataka High Court (HC) of a man accused of sexually assaulting the lifeless body of a 21-year-old woman following her murder highlights the concern regarding the … Continue reading Right of the Dead: Analysing the Legal Framework for Necrophilia in India
- Anushka Satya and Nishant Kumar In 2019, the Supreme Court judge bench of the then Chief Justice of India, Justice Ranjan Gogoi, and Justices Deepak Gupta and Sanjiv Khanna, has observed that “It is very apparent that what should not have happened has happened and the state has to give compensation”. This statement is remarkable because a … Continue reading CHALLENGING THE LEGALITY OF REMISSION IN BILKIS BANO CASE
-By Bhavya Sharma Introduction Cases of rape in India are reported in the newspapers almost every other day. A careful reading of these reports through a criminological perspective, keeping in mind the theories of crime causation, would help in not only identifying the circumstances that led to the commission of the offence but also in … Continue reading A Criminological Perspective on Sexual Crimes in India
-By Abhijeet Shrivastava Introduction As is well known, the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act (“Atrocities Act”) was enacted by the Indian Parliament in 1989 as an anti-discrimination law. This legislation focused on countering negative discrimination against persons from the aforesaid categories. It crafted offences which had a nexus with their … Continue reading POCSO Or Atrocities Courts: Which Jurisdiction Is More ‘Special’?
-By Sarthak Bhardwaj and Rupam Jha Introduction: In India, every sensitive socio-political development finds its way to the judiciary. The Supreme Court and the various high courts are constantly grappling with several matters of public importance. However, seldom do judgements assume the centre stage and become a subject of controversy. This is precisely what happened … Continue reading Sexual Assault under the POCSO Act: A Flawed Interpretative Methodology
