Further, courts in India continue to be unfair and biased against survivors of online gender-based violence, particularly women, the report reveals.
While some court orders acknowledge the harm caused by online violence, courts often use language that is condescending and overly protective rather than focusing on the rights of the survivors, the report reveals.
The report titled ‘The Judiciary’s Tryst with Online Gender-Based Violence: An Empirical Analysis of Indian Cases and Prevalent Judicial Attitudes’ was done with the support of the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Canada and the Ford Foundation. The lead authors are Malavika Rajkumar and Shreeja Sen.
The report delves into the issue of OGBV in India and reveals how courts view such cases.
The study highlights that some of the laws in place, like those in the Indian Penal Code (IPC), use outdated and biased terms such as “outraging the modesty of a woman,” which support traditional and unfair ideas about women in the courtroom.
Additionally, the study found that court orders frequently aim to “protect” women’s honor and virtue from offensive comments online.
Some judgments even use the idea of women being sacred as a reason to shield them from harm.
Source: Barandbench
