Supreme Court directs to remove 2-finger test from medical syllabus

The top court of India said that those who will conduct the two-finger test in rape cases would be held guilty of misconduct.

The Supreme Court has once again called for a ban on the two-finger test in rape cases and those who will conduct it would be held guilty of misconduct.

A Bench of Justice DY Chandrachud and Justice Hima Kohli made the observations in the SC order overturning the acquittal of a rape accused in the Telangana High Court on October 31, 2022.

“The two-finger test is based on the incorrect assumption that a sexually active woman cannot be raped. Nothing could be further from the truth — a woman’s sexual history is wholly immaterial while adjudicating whether the accused raped her,” said the bench, as reported by TOI.

"The probative value of a woman's testimony does not depend upon her sexual history. It is patriarchal and sexist to suggest that a woman cannot be believed when she states that she was raped, merely because she is sexually active," added the bench.

SC directs govt to review medical curriculum

The court has directed the Centre and states to review the syllabus in medical schools with a view to ensure that the 'two-finger test' or 'per vaginum' examination is not prescribed as one of the procedures to be adopted while examining survivors of sexual assault and rape.

“The home secretaries of each state shall in addition issue directions to the directors general of police in this regard. The DGPs shall, in turn, communicate these directions to the superintendents of police (SPs),” the bench said further.

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