Survivor’s identity must remain protected even if accused not tried for rape, says Delhi High Court

Delhi High Court said that the law bars disclosure of a woman’s identity even though the accused were not asked to face trial for the rape charge in the case. | Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto The Delhi High Court has ordered the removal of a sexual assault survivor’s name and personal details from old court orders available online. The Court said that the law bars disclosure of her identity even though the accused were not asked to face trial for the rape charge in the case.Justice Amit Mahajan passed the order on October 29 while hearing a woman’s plea that her identity had been exposed through court records available on the internet.The woman had filed a criminal complaint in 2007, accusing certain persons of assault, rape and criminal intimidation. However, in 2011, a Magistrate refused to proceed with the rape charge and allowed the case to continue only for assault.The woman challenged this decision before a Sessions Court, but her plea was rejected in 2013. The Delhi High Court also rejected her challenge in 2016.Subsequently, she approached the High Court seeking removal of her name, father’s name and address from all three court orders, which were available on court websites and other legal portals.She argued that anyone could find these orders through a simple internet search of her name. She also alleged that the accused had circulated copies of the orders among her neighbours, leading to taunts, physical violence and social isolation.Allowing her plea, Justice Mahajan said that the law protects the identity of a person against whom a sexual offence has been alleged.“It is pertinent to mention that the petitioner is not an accused seeking to be forgotten. The petitioner is the victim/complainant of an alleged sexual offence. Section 228A of the IPC, now Section 72 of the BNS, bars disclosure of the identity of any person against whom such an offence is ‘alleged or found to have been committed’,” the judge said.“The protection attaches to the allegation itself. It is, therefore, immaterial that the accused persons were not summoned for the offence under Section 376 of the IPC,” the Court said.It said that the three court orders disclosed the woman’s name, parentage and address. “No public interest is served by such disclosure, which only results in the very victimisation that Section 228A (which makes it a punishable offence to publish the name or identity of a rape victim) of the IPC seeks to prevent,” the Court said. Published - November 02, 2026 02:54 am IST