- Forum/Initiative: Supreme Court of India Guidelines & Special Report on Gender Jurisprudence
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Constitutional Provisions: Articles 14 (Equality before Law), 15 (Prohibition of Discrimination), and 21 (Right to Life and Personal Dignity)
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Key Statutes: Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 (BSA), Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS), POSH Act, 2013, POCSO Act, 2012
Background & Context
For decades, Indian judicial orders—particularly in cases involving sexual offences, domestic violence, and workplace harassment—frequently relied on gendered assumptions, patriarchal terminology, and victim-blaming commentary. Judges routinely used phrases like “woman of easy virtue,” “helpless female,” or “outraged the modesty”. In some instances, High Courts even suggested marriage or compromise between rape survivors and accused individuals.
Building on the 2023 Handbook on Combating Gender Stereotypes and landmark rulings like Aparna Bhat v. State of Madhya Pradesh (2021) and State of Jharkhand v. Shailendra Kumar Rai (2022), the Supreme Court consolidated and expanded its directives into the In Re: Gender Sensitivity in Writing Judgments framework (2025–2026). The mandate moves beyond mere word choice, tackling courtroom environment, cross-examination practices, and secondary trauma during trial.
Key Legal Issues
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Impact of Judicial Language on Constitutional Morality: Does the use of gender-stereotypical or value-laden language in court orders violate a survivor’s fundamental right to dignity under Article 21?
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Irrelevance of Sexual History: Can a survivor’s past lifestyle, character, or sexual history be questioned or evaluated during criminal trials to assess credibility or consent?
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Institutional Accountability & Courtroom Practices: What active duties do trial and appellate courts owe to survivors and vulnerable witnesses to prevent re-traumatization during court proceedings?
Core Principles & Directives Laid Down
1. Mandatory Elimination of Gender Stereotypes & Archaic Language
The Supreme Court explicitly banned judges from using moralistic, patronizing, or sensationalized vocabulary in orders. The guidelines emphasize that language in judgments must reflect objective legal findings rather than societal biases.
| Problematic / Outdated Term | Approved Neutral Alternative | Rationale |
| “Prosecutrix” / “Helpless woman” | Complainant / Survivor / Victim | Eliminates submissive framing; focuses on constitutional agency. |
| “Woman of easy virtue” / “Lust” | Irrelevant to trial; focus strictly on consent | Character evidence is barred by law; past sexual history has zero relevance to consent. |
| “Outraged the modesty” | Sexually assaulted / Violated bodily autonomy | Replaces patriarchal notions of “shame” with clear legal violations of bodily integrity. |
| “Physical relationship” (in non-consensual contexts) | Rape / Sexual assault | Prevents trivializing non-consensual violent acts as mere personal relationships. |
| “Gold digger” / “Hormonal/Emotional” | Focus purely on material evidence presented | Prevents gendered character assassination in property or maintenance disputes. |
2. Strict Adherence to Statutory Bars on Character Evidence
Courts were instructed to strictly enforce Section 48 and Sections 154–155 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 (BSA) (formerly Sections 53A and 146 of the Indian Evidence Act). Trial courts must actively intervene to stop defense counsel from asking indecent, scandalous, or offensive questions regarding a survivor’s past sexual conduct, clothing, or lifestyle.
3. Survivor-Centric Courtroom Infrastructure & Trial Conduct
The Court framed actionable guidelines to make the justice system compassionate and accessible:
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In-Camera Trials: Mandatory in-camera proceedings under Section 366(2) of the BNSS, 2023 for rape and POCSO matters.
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“Witness as Guest” Model: Avoiding unnecessary adjournments, long wait times, and hostile courtroom arrangements.
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Vulnerable Witness Deposition Centres (VWDC): Widespread use of screen barriers, video links, and pre-trial counseling to minimize direct contact with the accused and lower anxiety.
Evolution through Judicial Precedents
The jurisprudence in this directive relies on a continuous line of precedents:
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Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan (1997): Established workplace harassment guidelines rooted in fundamental rights.
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Aparna Bhat v. State of M.P. (2021): Expressly forbade courts from recommending compromise, bail conditions involving contact with the victim, or making stereotypical remarks about female conduct.
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State of Jharkhand v. Shailendra Kumar Rai (2022): Completely outlawed the invasive and unscientific “two-finger test”.
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Vaneeta Patnaik v. Nirmal Kanti Chakrabarti (2025): Expanded POSH Act interpretations by recognizing that hostile work environments can constitute continuing harassment.
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Bechan Prasad v. State of U.P. (2026): Allahabad High Court reaffirmed that calling a survivor a “woman of easy virtue” directly violates dignity under Article 21 and is expressly barred by evidence law.
Significance & Analysis
This movement marks a shift from formal equality to substantive equality within the Indian legal system.
First, language shapes law. When a judgment describes a survivor as “helpless” or assesses her character, it implicitly conditions legal outcomes on societal notions of purity or vulnerability rather than consent and rule of law. Removing these biases ensures that legal reasoning stays objective and constitutional.
Second, it addresses secondary victimization. Many survivors withdraw from legal proceedings not just because of trial delay, but because of the hostility and public shaming experienced inside courtrooms during cross-examination. Implementing strict control over questioning and deploying Vulnerable Witness Centres directly reduces trial trauma.
Finally, it aligns Indian jurisprudence with international standards, including Article 5 of the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), which obligates states to modify social and cultural patterns that perpetuate gender stereotypes.
Challenges & The Road Ahead
While issuing guidelines is an important milestone, the main challenge lies in ground-level execution across lower judicial tiers:
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Unconscious Bias in Lower Judiciary: Judicial academies must conduct continuous sensitisation workshops. Old habits in drafting orders often persist out of routine rather than malice.
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Infrastructure Deficits: Many district courts across Tier-2 and Tier-3 towns still lack functional Vulnerable Witness Deposition Centres, separate waiting areas, or working video-conferencing units.
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Bar Association Support: Directives aimed at judges are only half the battle. Defense attorneys must also be held accountable by state bar councils when cross-examination tactics cross into character assassination.
Judicial writing is an exercise in constitutional trust. By replacing outdated jargon with dignity-affirming language and enforcing survivor-centric procedures, the Indian judiciary takes a crucial step toward ensuring that the courtroom is a space for equal justice rather than societal judgment.