'No Means NO', Women clothing doesn't indicate invitation: Supreme Court dispels rape stereotypes

Supreme Court's (SC) Chief Justice on August 16 said that apext court has prepared a 'Handbook on Combating Gender Stereotypes' in a bid to identify and remove the use of words and phrases which are loaded with gender stereotypes, in judgements and court language. 

Although it was first announced earlier this year at a Women's Day celebration, the plan to publish this legal glossary of inappropriately gendered terms used in legal discourse has been in the works for several years. 

Chief Justice DY Chandrachud even admitted to personally undertaking the mission.

This handbook, created by a committee led by Calcutta High Court judge Moushumi Bhattacharya, not only points out language that encourages gender stereotypes and suggests appropriate alternatives, but it also highlights common but mistaken ways of thinking that are based on stereotypes of gender, particularly those that pertain to women, and it highlights binding rulings from the Supreme Court that have rejected these stereotypes.

Among other things, the handbook tackles stereotypes about women’s character that have percolated into judicial thinking and the assumptions may be based on the way she dresses, her sexual history, and other things that have no bearing on the decision-making process. 

The real effect of these presumptions, according to the manual, is that they might also influence how her actions and utterances are evaluated in court. 

"Assumptions based on a woman's character or the clothes she wears diminish the importance of consent in sexual relationships, as well as the agency and personhood of women," the manual states.