Supreme Court bans two-finger test, says it re-traumatises rape survivor

The Supreme Court condemned the two-finger test for rape survivors on Monday, saying those who use this unscientific and invasive examination method should be prosecuted. The court noted that the test re-traumatises the victim and ordered that all references to it be removed from study materials.

During the hearing, Justice DY Chandrachud said, "It is patriarchal and sexist to suggest that a woman cannot be believed when she says that she was raped simply because she is sexually active."

"This court has repeatedly condemned using the two-finger test in rape and sexual assault cases. The alleged test has no scientific ground and is an invasive method of examining rape survivors... It, in contrast, re-victimises and re-traumatises women. "The two-finger test must not be used," said Justice Chandrachud while reading the operative part of a criminal case judgement. "The test is flawed because it assumes that a sexually active woman cannot be raped." "This could not be further from the truth."

The apex court issued similar views on the subject when the practice was deemed unconstitutional.

When the Supreme Court asked the government to replace it in 2013, it said, "Without a doubt, the two-finger test and its interpretation violate rape survivors' rights to privacy, physical and mental integrity, and dignity. Thus, even if the report is positive, this test cannot ipso facto give rise to the presumption of consent."

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• Supreme Court
• Two-finger test
• rape survivors