Karnataka Law on Honour Crimes: Excluding Interfaith Couples Fails the Equality Guarantee of India’s Constitution
State of Karnataka recently enacted the Karnataka Freedom of Choice in Marriage and Prevention and Prohibition of Crimes in the Name of Honour and Tradition (Eva Nammava Eva Nammava) Act,...
The Persistence of Witch Hunting in India: A Crisis of Legal Enforcement and State Responsibility
In July 2025, a mob in Bihar’s Purnea district hacked to death and burned five members of a Scheduled Tribe family, including three women, on accusations of witchcraft. The incident...
The Taliban’s New “Criminal Procedure Code for Courts”: Fundamental Rights Violations Are Now Legal in Afghanistan
On 4 January 2026, the Taliban adopted the “Criminal Procedure Code for Courts” (De Mahakumu Jazaai Osulnama). Until then, Taliban leader Hibabullah Akhundzad simply posted new rules on X, which...
The Inconsistent Approach to Violence Against Women by the European Court of Human Rights
In two recent judgments involving similar fact patterns, the European Court of Human Rights reached opposing conclusions as to whether there had been a violation of the European Convention on...
The US TAKE IT DOWN Act: The Fight Against Deepfake-Enabled TFGBV and Human Rights
On 19 May 2025, the US President signed a new law named TAKE IT DOWN Act (S.146) (‘the Act’), which protects victims of real and deepfake ‘revenge pornography,’ a crime...
Sexual Harassment and the Law in Africa
Rights Up: The Oxford Human Rights Hub Podcast · Sexual Harassment and the Law in Africa In this episode, Almas Shaikh talks with Dr Anthony Ubani and Dr Wycliffe Nyachoti...
Rethinking the POSH Act in India: Expanding sexual harassment to include sex-based harassment at the workplace
In India, the primary legislative instrument aimed at creating safe and dignified workplaces for women is the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 (‘POSH...
Sexual Offences Will Never Be The Same Again: The Embrace Projects tackles the definition of rape in South Africa (Part 2)
In Part 1 of this blog, I explained how the High Court of South Africa came to decide that certain provisions of the Sexual Offences Act were “unconstitutional…to the extent...
Sexual Offences Will Never Be The Same Again: The Embrace Projects tackles the definition of rape in South Africa (Part 1)
In The Embrace Project v Minister of Justice, the High Court of South Africa in Pretoria declared unconstitutional an unreasonable belief in consent when prosecuting sexual offences in South Africa....
Discarding the Marital Rape Exemption: From Fundamental Rights to Vulnerability Theory
Recently, in Gorakhnth Sharma v. State of Chhattisgarh, the Chhattisgarh High Court acquitted a man, who allegedly forced anal intercourse on his wife resulting in fatal injuries, of all charges...
ECtHR’s Judgment in N.Ö. v Türkiye: A Missed Opportunity to Address the Structural Gender Inequalities
On 14 January 2025, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR or the Court) issued a significant judgment on sexual assault in the case of N.Ö v Türkiye. The case...
A Road to Safety: Addressing Domestic Violence in Sindh, Pakistan
An increasing number of Pakistani women are turning to legal avenues to address domestic violence (DV). However, significant implementation gaps remain. The province of Sindh adopted a comprehensive roadmap to...
