Gender-specific laws not meant to be anti-opposite gender: Delhi HC

New Delhi, Aug 29 (IANS) The Delhi High Court has stressed on the importance of remaining gender-neutral while dealing with gender-specific laws, stating that the existence of such laws should not lead to bias against any particular gender.

Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma observations came while setting aside a trial court order that framed charges against a man for outraging the modesty of a woman employee by using vulgar language against her.

"...it is crucial to recognise that gender-specific laws are not meant to be 'anti-opposite gender'but rather serve the purpose of addressing unique issues faced by a particular gender,” she said.

The court said that gender-specific laws are designed to address specific concerns faced by particular genders and should not be seen as inherently biased against the opposite gender.

The judge said that the foundation of any legal proceeding, regardless of gender specificity, rests on the availability of adequate evidence and adherence to due process of law. It stressed that gender specificity should not compromise the fundamental principles of fairness and justice.

Justice Sharma further clarified that the fact that a piece of legislation is gender-specific should not change the role of a judge from being neutral to tilting towards a particular gender.

Judicial neutrality is vital to ensuring fair and equitable treatment of all parties, irrespective of gender, she said.

The judge said that while India's criminal justice system is adversarial in nature, it should not be adversarial between genders but instead focus on the individuals involved, treating both the complainant and the accused fairly.

Justice Sharma stressed that gender-specific provisions should be interpreted and applied neutrally, without presuming bias in favour of any gender unless such a presumption is explicitly mentioned in the legislation itself.

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