India’s Supreme Court has released a handbook for judges to avoid the usage of gender stereotypical terms like adulteress, affair, ladylike, mistress, and marriageable age, among others. The handbook, released on August 16, also contains preferred or alternate language that judges must use instead.
Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud said the handbook, ‘Combating Gender Stereotypes’, aims to assist judges and the legal community in identifying, understanding and combating stereotypes about women. “Intention is not to criticise or cast doubt on past judgements but merely to show how stereotypes may unwittingly be employed,” he said.
The CJI said the handbook contains a glossary of gender-unjust terms and suggests alternative words or phrases that may be used while drafting pleadings as well as orders and judgments.The handbook also highlights binding decisions of the Supreme Court of India that have rejected these stereotypes and can be utilised by judges to dispel gender stereotypes.
While this glossary primarily deals with stereotypes concerning men and women, it is important to recognise that harmful stereotypes can exist with respect to any gender identity, the handbook noted.
The handbook goes on to clarify what the term “gender” implies.
“While ‘sex’ refers to the biological attributes of individuals, ‘gender’ refers to socially constructed roles, behaviours, expressions, and identities of girls, women, boys, men, and gender-diverse individuals.
Gender identity is not limited to a binary (girl/woman and boy/man) but rather exists on a spectrum and can evolve over time,” it states.The handbook also discusses in detail different kinds of gender stereotypes, how they function and the impact they have on judicial decision-making.
