In a scathing indictment, the High Court found the trial court’s “noticeable silence” striking as “graphic details of the victim’s past sexual history” were used to attack her credibility. A rape survivor’s sexual history was once expressly admissible as evidence under Section 155(4) of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872. Although the provision was repealed in 2003 following years of criticism and recommendations for reform by the Law Commission, the practice of invoking a survivor’s sexual history continues to cast its shadow over rape trials, experts pointed out. Need for institutional reformsA punitive approach to sexual violence, without accompanying institutional reforms, will allow “rape myths” about a survivor’s character to continue influencing rape trials, advocate Bharat Chugh said. But its implementation must be monitored, including through surprise inspections of trial courts by judges of the higher judiciary,” he said.