Madras High Court: POCSO Cases Unfairly Target Boys, Two-Finger Test Persists

The Madras High Court recently noted that cases under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act involving consensual relationships between minors were being registered only against boys, despite the Act being gender-neutral. [S Venkatesh v. State of TN]A Bench of Justices GR Swaminathan and V Lakshminarayanan said,"The male child is unfairly criminalized and his family drawn into JJB proceedings, while the treatment of the two families remains unequal for the same relationship."To remedy this, the Court suggested that when the parents or guardians of a girl insist on registering a case, the police should inform them that the boy and his family have the same right to lodge a complaint.Justice GR Swaminathan and Justice V LakshminarayananThis was one of the several other systemic gaps the Court flagged in the implementation of the POCSO Act in Tamil Nadu, including the continued use of the prohibited two-finger test and hymen-related examinations.“Even in court rooms during appeals in sexual crimes, the discussion on hymen is prevalent,” the Court noted.It called for strict compliance with medico-legal guidelines, periodic audits and sensitisation of medical and judicial officers. It also recommended discontinuing potency tests - including in cases arising from consensual adolescent pregnancies - and relying on DNA analysis and other scientific methods.The Court directed the Tamil Nadu Chief Secretary to constitute a committee comprising secretaries of the de