NEW DELHI — Seeking to clarify several years of judicial confusion regarding the definition of physical assault, the Supreme Court has initiated a suo motu case to remind High Court judges that forcibly removing a victim's clothing is, in fact, considered an attempt to rape.

The intervention follows a 2026 Patna High Court ruling which concluded that removing a salwar and pressing breasts constituted the lesser charge of "outraging modesty," thereby reducing the sentence for the accused. The ruling continues a robust judicial tradition established by a 2023 Allahabad High Court order, which similarly determined that grabbing a child's breasts and breaking a pyjama string was not an attempt to rape, but merely "aggravated sexual assault."

"Despite clear precedents, we are finding that lower courts require ongoing education regarding which severe acts of sexual violence they are no longer permitted to minimize," an official familiar with the ongoing hearings stated, adding that newly approved guidelines on judicial sensitivity are being distributed to courts that have maintained a steadfast disregard for them.

The re-education efforts will begin immediately, officials confirmed, though they cautioned against expecting rapid changes from a judicial system that, in 2025, granted bail to an accused rapist on the legal grounds that the complainant had "invited trouble" by consuming alcohol.