The Supreme Court has ruled that names and identities of victims of rape and sexual assaults cannot be disclosed, said reports on Tuesday. Earlier, the Supreme Court had questioned how the identity of minor rape victims could be disclosed and had assured it would examine the aspect related to the IPC’s Section 228-A, dealing with the identity of victims of sexual offences.
A bench of Justice Madan B Lokur and Justice Deepak Gupta said, “How could the identity of a rape victim who is alive and minor or unsound mind be disclosed even after getting consent from her parents.”
“Why should the identity of a minor victim be disclosed just because her parents have given consent… Even if a person is of unsound mind, she has a right to privacy. A minor will become major. Why should this stigma be there for life?” they asked, also questioning disclosure of the identity of rape victims who had died.