NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Friday said if a girl does not wish to undergo an internal bodily examination, the state has “no business to add insult to her injury by compelling her” to agree to such a test to determine whether she was raped.
Justice Girish Kathpalia made the observation while denying bail to a man, reportedly a Bangladeshi national, who was accused of raping his 11-year-old step-daughter, born in Uttar Pradesh. He had also threatened her not to disclose the matter to anyone, the prosecution alleged.
The accused approached the HC claiming he had been falsely implicated in the case. He also argued that the survivor was “much more than 11 years” old at the time of the alleged incident.
The defence argued that while the survivor’s mother had agreed to an internal medical exam, the child herself refused to undergo the procedure. The counsel claimed that this should be considered a ground for granting bail.
However, Justice Kathpalia rejected the argument in toto and strongly defended the child’s right to bodily integrity.
“The bodily integrity of a girl child has to be respected and if she does not wish to undergo internal exam, the State has no business to add insult to her injury by compelling her to agree to such exam,” the court said.
The judge also dismissed the defence claim regarding the survivor’s age. The court noted that the accused himself had earlier submitted an affidavit before school authorities confirming the girl’s date of birth. Based on that document, the survivor was 11 years old at the time of the alleged offence.
The court noted that when asked what age the accused believed the survivor to be, his counsel provided no answer. The court observed that the issue of the survivor’s consent had not been raised by the defence. The court said whether the survivor was a minor or an adult would not significantly benefit the accused, since the question of consent itself was absent from the defence argument.