Introduction:
Male are not seen as victims in India, they are only seen as perpetrators. If rape has been committed then it’s assumed that the female is the victim no one thinks that it can be male also. The society has formed a presumption that no men can be raped. Only the females can be raped and can be sexually harassed. Not only that, it is assumed that man doesn’t even care if he is being sexually harassed, only the question arises why would he be? He is a man and men are proud of these things, not ashamed. He doesn’t go through post-traumatic problems. This has somewhat been unfair towards the male. It has become really important now to take care of males as well. They should feel secure too and should have laws and provisions especially made for their safety and protection as well.
About the Topic
Male Molestation in India doesn’t hold much importance as it is not considered a crime and even the word molestation is not linked with men[1]. Male molestation occurs when a man is sexually harassed or raped without his consent by either male or female. But not everyone thinks a male can be molested by a female, it can only be vis-a-versa.
According to the society, it comes without saying that men don’t get affected by the sexual abuse or sexual assault. According to section 375 of the IPC, only women can be raped as there is no provision made for the male, if a male has been raped, he can’t file a complaint under section 375. Section 375 IPC only covers the female aspect. It directly affects their masculinity that they can’t take these things. People in India think that man doesn’t get affected and they don’t even care. And if we look at the law aspect, it is totally biased as they have all the laws regarding the safety and protection of women and children but no one cares enough to do the same for men.
If a man faces any sexual abuse or sexual assault, he can file it under section 377 of IPC but it has one condition that it should be homogenous in nature that means if a man is sexually abused by another man, it doesn’t include woman but because it is assumed that woman can’t neither rape any man nor sexually assault him. Even if a man is being raped then also, he doesn’t have any laws which can support and help him get justice. Indian law does not consider a man as ‘victim’ and a woman as ‘offender’.[2]
Historical Perspective
If we look at the history of male molestation it doesn’t hold much importance as the male section in India is considered as dominant and no one thinks that something like this could actually happen with a man. Earlier, everything was done according to the male section. Not these things were not given importance, sexual assault and sexual abuse occurred before but no one actually talked about it or informed it. Earlier, even female cases were not reported then thinking about the male section, of course, it directly comes down to their masculinity. No particular law was made regarding these things and even the Rape of women was not given importance. Law was not that strong earlier and to come forward and tell your story takes a lot of courage.
Changes Required in the Existing Laws
If we talk about giving equal rights to man and providing safety to them, a lot of times sections are amended and things are amended in sections. And in this, not many things have to be done just mere changes in the rape section which talks about rape against a woman, if it becomes gender-neutral then a lot of problems will be solved, if the section becomes gender-neutral and included male as victims, then even the males will feel safe and protected.
The question arises that how a man can be sexually assaulted by a woman? Yes, even a man can be sexually assaulted by a woman. Just like in the existing section, the victims herself or her local guardians or her legal representative can file a report against the rape crime or sexual harassment.
There is no specific provision made for rape against men. Like in Section 376 of IPC, punishment for raping a woman above 18 is different as compared to below 16 and below 12. Mere changes in the existing sections of the Indian Penal Code can change the world for males. By making the laws, gender-neutral, India will see a lot of changes and development.
International Perspective
Countries like the UK, Canada, etc consider male molestation as a crime and have laws that provide justice to the male section of the society. In the UK, the laws are made while keeping in mind both the genders – male and female and are given equal rights to both. In 2003, it made its law gender-neutral and it says if any male or female penetrates the vagina or anus of another person without their consent. The offense is committed where the penetration is by a part of the body or anything else for sexual intent. [3] Thus, we can say that in the UK males are given full rights and being treated equally.
Even in Canada, sexual abuse committed against a person includes both male and female. Both are given equal rights and it is believed that even a man can be a victim of sexual abuse. [4]
Present Scenario
If we talk about the present scenario, India in terms of giving rights and making laws stricter is development. In the last couple of years, we have made a growth in our legal system. A lot more has to be done but a lot has been done also. If we compare our laws for man and laws of other countries, we are lacking behind in making laws for the safety of men but if we compare our country earlier and now, we will see a huge difference in various laws. Earlier, section 377 of IPC was considered a crime that means homogeneous love was considered as a crime and if a man is raped by another man then he can file a report under section 377 of IPC but we still have pros and cons.
We can see a lot of examples of child abuse where a male child is sexually abused but when it comes to raping or molesting a man. It is difficult to find because the male section doesn’t have any laws where they can file a report or even come forward and talk about what has happened with him? But that doesn’t mean that it didn’t happen with him.
Conclusion
When it comes to rape or sexual abuse or even sexual assault it is assumed that the woman might have been the victim. No one even thinks about male as a victim. When we cannot even think about it, how can we accept the fact that men can be raped too? And this is the main reason that even if a man is facing any kind of sexual abuse or sexual assault, he will not come forward and speak about it. Both males and females should be given equal rights and protected. To adopt such changes our society needs to change its mindset. People need to accept the fact that men can be raped too and our legal system should make some changes, wherever possible to make the laws gender-neutral. Men should be given equal rights.
References:
[1] Maitreyee. (2019, August). Sexual Abuse Of Males: Shrouded In The Shadows. Gonews India. https://www.gonewsindia.com/latest-news/health/sexual-abuse-of-males-shrouded-in-the-shadows-553
[2] Sexual Abuse Of Males: Shrouded In The Shadows. (n.d.). Gonews India. https://www.gonewsindia.com/latest-news/health/sexual-abuse-of-males-shrouded-in-the-shadows-553
[3] Male Sexual Abuse and the Law. (2015). SurvivorsUK. https://www.survivorsuk.org/question/male-sexual-abuse-and-the-law/
[4] Sexual Abuse – Canadian Red Cross. (2019). Red Cross Canada. https://www.redcross.ca/how-we-help/violence-bullying-and-abuse-prevention/youth/sexual-abuse
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