-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offences in India has witnessed substantial doctrinal shifts, yet certain judicial interpretations remain anchored in outdated binaries.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
- Vaani Negi Introduction Adolescence, the latest four-episode miniseries on Netflix, has been rapidly gaining acclaim, and deservedly so. The series delves into the harrowing aftermath of a 13-year-old boy being accused of murder. The narrative reveals school-going children looking for direction from a digital world that warps their perceptions, rather than from teachers no … Continue reading Penalising Adolescent Bodily Agency: Is It Time to Revisit Consent under the POCSO Act?
-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?
-Tanya Sara George Introduction As per a 2024 FATF report, most domestic money laundering operations are conducted through open sources and social media networks. Initially designed as neutral forums for communication under Section 2(w) of the IT Act of 2000, these platforms have evolved into dual-purpose entities, facilitating not just digital interactions but financial transactions. … Continue reading Digital Platforms and Dirty Money: Addressing Financial Non-Regulation within Social Media Platforms
-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 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 Sanvi Bhatia and Sukrut Khandekar Of late, a concerning trend in relation to rape laws in India can be observed. Even though India recorded around 88 rape cases a day in 2019, every once in a while there has been one particular case like the Delhi gang rape case of 2012 or the Hyderabad … Continue reading Analysing the Shakti Bill through Beccaria’s Lens of Deterrence
-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
-By Muskan Jhunjhunwala Introduction Sexual offences, in a general sense, are a rigorous attack on the body, particularly the molestation of genitals without the sufferer’s consent. It tends to outrage the dignity, self-respect and modesty of the victim and in its true sense is an attack on bodily integrity. Rape, in India, is considered a … Continue reading Relevancy of Medical and Forensic Evidences in Sexual Offences – An Analysis
-By Rajashri Seal Introduction Recently, a post on the blog argued in favour of chemical castration laws by hailing chemical castration as an effective and constitutionally sound measure against curbing rape, especially when such procedure is carried out with the consent of the sex offender. In the recent past, there has been a clamour for … Continue reading A Case against Chemical Castration for Sex Offenders
- By Anand Singh Introduction - On November 24th, 2020, Pakistan’s cabinet approved two anti-rape ordinances that call for chemical castration of the rapists and setting up special courts for trails. The two ordinances are the Anti-Rape (Investigation and Trail) Ordinance, 2020 and the Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 2020. The legislation comes after an incident … Continue reading Chemical Castration of Sexual Offenders in India – A Need for Reformation in Indian Anti-rape Laws
By Arush Mittal Introduction Sudan has recently seen a landmark development concerning the rights of women, as the Sudanese government has recently ratified and criminalized the draconian practice of Female Genital Mutilation (‘FGM’). In the past, the transitional government had been working to curb this widespread practice and in turn, approved the draft legislation after … Continue reading Criminalization of the practice of FGM in Sudan: A Ray of Hope
By Tanvi Rahim and Sannidhi Buch The 2019 Amendment “There can be no keener revelation of a society’s soul than the way in which it treats its children.” -Nelson Mandela Sexual abuse of children is a dark reality which is prevalent in several countries. A recent review of 55 studies from 24 countries found that … Continue reading The 2019 Amendment to POCSO: A Socio-Legal Analysis
By Rishav Devrani and Poojan Bulani INTRODUCTION The Sudanese government on April 22, 2020, made an announcement criminalizing the long-followed practice of Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (hereinafter ‘FGM/C’) by amending its Criminal Law Article 141. A WHO report shows that more than 200 million women and girls alive today have undergone the practice of female genital … Continue reading Sudan’s Criminal Law Amendments and the State of Women’s Rights
By Arjit Mishra Gender neutrality is a concept that postulates the eradication of distinction between different sexes in the drafting and execution of laws. It aims to make every citizen entitle to equal rights, for example, equal protection of the law, etc. without distinguishing on sex. As regards, rape laws, it aims to exterminate the … Continue reading Gender Neutral Rape Laws: Need of the Hour
By Sri Hari Mangalam Introduction Three Strikes and you are out, a common baseball phrase is also the underlying principle for criminal penalties in America. The measure originally enacted to curb the increase in violent crimes across the country is as of now, centred in a few states. California passed the law in 1994, in … Continue reading Three Strikes and You’re Out: Indian Criminal Legislation Needs Baseball Rules?
By Aditya Krishna Introduction In March of 2018, in the case of State of West Bengal v Animesh Boxi,[i] which is widely considered the first-ever,[ii] the Sessions court in Tamluk, West Bengal, sentenced a man to five years imprisonment along with a fine of Rs. 9,000, for uploading private and objectionable pictures of a girl … Continue reading Revenge Porn: Prosecution Under the Current Indian Legal System
By Kartik Agarwal India went into a state of despair on December 16th, 2012 when a 23-year-old girl was raped by six men in a moving bus in Delhi. Five of them were sentenced to death in 2013 by the Fast track court and one was sent to the juvenile justice board. The death penalty … Continue reading Are Rights of Victim Subservient to the Rights of Convicts: An Analysis in Light of the Nirbhaya Case
By Anmol Mathur Introduction The Constitution of India guarantees all persons the right to personal life and liberty, equal protection of laws and prohibits any discrimination based on sex. The Constitution is not simply a long, celebrated, big-book of ideas on democracy and civil society, but is a tool for social change in the coming … Continue reading The Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, 2019 and Gender-Neutral Sexual Offences in India
