‘Hymen Checks’ – Assessing the use of two-finger tests in rape adjudication in India

Two-finger or virginity testing or hymen check refers to the examination of female genitalia, for the purpose of determining virginity. This test is invasive and degrading, has no scientific basis and can neither prove nor disprove allegations of rape. I will be presenting a paper which assesses the use of these tests in judgments of rape in India by studying district court judgments from Delhi and Kerala and high court judgments from all 28 states in the country. Firstly, this paper sets out the historical and colonial context of the two-finger testing in India. It then focuses on the law reforms in this field, including, landmark Indian Supreme Court judgments on this issue. In 2013, the Indian Supreme Court held that the two-finger test violates the right to privacy, physical and mental integrity, and dignity of the ‘rape victim/survivor’. The Verma Report in 2013 strongly suggested moving away from the use of such tests in rape cases. But what do the data findings reveal? Does the two-finger test continue to be conducted and referred to in judgments?. Using qualitative and quantitative analyses, the paper evaluates the continuing use of these tests in rape law judgments in present day India.