‘Virginity Test Cannot Be Imposed On Women, Violates Fundamental Rights,’ Says Chhattisgarh High Court

Chhattisgarh High Court Rules: Woman Cannot Be Forced to Undergo Virginity Test

On March 31, 2025, the Chhattisgarh High Court ruled that a woman cannot be compelled to undergo a virginity test, as it would infringe upon her fundamental rights guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution, which ensures the protection of life, liberty, and dignity. The court emphasised that granting permission for such a test would violate the principles of natural justice and the fundamental rights, as well as the modesty of a woman, as per PTI.

“No woman can be forced to conduct her virginity test. It is a violation of fundamental rights guaranteed under Article 21. It has to be borne in mind that Article 21 is the ‘heart of fundamental rights’,” the high court stated, as per PTI.

Although the order was passed in January 2025, it was only recently made public. The court firmly stated that the petitioner's request was not just a legal misstep but a direct infringement on the fundamental rights of women.

What Was The Case About?

This ruling comes after Justice Arvind Kumar Verma heard a petition from a man who demanded his wife's virginity test, accusing her of being involved in an illicit relationship with another man. The petitioner contested a family court's decision from October 15, 2024, which had rejected his interim application. According to the petitioner's counsel, the couple, married on April 30, 2023, had lived together at the man's family home in Korba district. The woman allegedly told her family that her husband was impotent and refused to engage in a marital relationship or live with him.

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In response, the woman filed an interim application under Section 144 of the Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) on July 2, 2024, requesting Rs 20,000 maintenance from her husband. The man, in turn, demanded the virginity test, claiming that the woman was in an illicit relationship with her brother-in-law, and that their marriage had not been consummated. However, the family court in Raigarh dismissed the husband's request on October 15, 2024. Following this, the petitioner approached the high court with a criminal petition, although the case remains at the evidence stage in the family court.

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The High Court responded by stating that the petitioner could undergo a medical test or present other evidence to substantiate his allegations of impotence, instead of demanding a virginity test for his wife. The court's order, passed on January 9, 2025, clarified that the petitioner ‘cannot possibly be permitted to subject the wife to undergo her virginity test and fill up the lacuna in his evidence.’ This decision reaffirms the importance of protecting a woman's dignity and upholding her fundamental rights.

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