Karnataka HC issues SOP to streamline care, rehabilitation of child sex abuse survivors

Bengaluru: The High Court of Karnataka has issued an indicative Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for the protection and rehabilitation of minor victims of sexual offences, after noticing several cases where victims and their families were not informed about the procedure for Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP). 

Justice Suraj Govindaraj stated that the indicative SOP will remain in force until the authorities frame one based on expert advice. 

The court noted that the indicative SOP will provide a clear and predictable pathway — from the moment an offence is first reported, to the complete and successful rehabilitation of the survivor — eliminating procedural ambiguity, reducing delays and preventing interagency friction. 

"To ensure rapid implementation and technological robustness, the state government shall operationalise a mandatory, secure, cloud-based Digital POCSO Portal (DPP). This portal is not a standalone system but an integrated layer that leverages the established infrastructure of the national eCourts Mission Mode Project (Phase III). It will serve as the single, authoritative platform for the management of all POCSO cases within the state of Karnataka," the court said. 

According to the court, a breach of any critical timeline will trigger an automatic, system-generated escalation alert via SMS and official email to the designated supervisory authority. The court also issued guiding principles of the SOP to ensure immediate medical care and forensic evidence to engage a trained clinical psychologist or psychiatric social worker, trauma-informed care, therapeutic jurisprudence, zero-delay mandate, restorative confidence, confidentiality and privacy by design.

Pregnancy termination

The court noted that as survivors of sexual assault, minor victims are eligible for termination of pregnancy up to a gestational age of 24 weeks. "If the pregnancy has advanced beyond 24 weeks, termination is permissible. In such cases, the hospital, through the CWC, must approach the high court for authorisation within 48 hours. The petition must be supported by a comprehensive report and recommendation from the state-level medical board constituted under the MTP Act. All medical records related to the MTP shall be kept in a sealed, confidential file, separate from the main criminal case file on the DPP, accessible only upon a specific order of the high court," the court said. 

A 13-year-old victim had approached the court seeking directions to terminate her pregnancy. A friend of her uncle had sexually assaulted her. The court permitted medical termination of pregnancy and directed the authorities to preserve the terminated foetus for the purpose of DNA testing and analysis in the criminal proceedings, which are pending. 

Although the petition was disposed of, the matter has been ordered to be relisted on December 13 for consideration of the report to be filed in pursuance of the general directions.