Medical body rebrands lesbianism as ’sexual offence’; to teach ‘hymen importance, definition of virginity, defloration’

The National Medical Commission (NMC) has reintroduced lesbianism as a 'sexual offence' in its curriculum, which had been removed in 2022 per a Madras High Court directive. According to reports, the NMC, India's apex medical education regulator, had revised the forensic medical curriculum to reintroduce lesbianism as a 'sexual offence'. The curriculum will also teach the 'importance of the hymen', 'the definition of virginity and defloration'.

"Lesbianism and Sodomy" have been reinstated under the category of 'unnatural sexual offence.' The updated NMC curriculum will cover topics such as the significance of the hymen, the definition of virginity, defloration, and its medico-legal relevance.

“Describe anatomy of male and female genitalia, hymen and its types. Discuss the medico-legal importance of hymen. Define virginity, defloration, legitimacy and its medicolegal importance”, the curriculum read.

"Describe and discuss adultery and unnatural sexual offences- sodomy, incest, lesbianism, buccal coitus, bestiality, indecent assault and preparation of the report, framing the opinion and preservation and despatch of trace evidence in such cases", the curriculum read.

The updated curriculum eliminates the differentiation between consensual sex among queer individuals, adultery, and criminal acts like incest and bestiality.

“Describe and discuss the sexual perversions fetishism, transvestism, voyeurism, sadism, necrophagia, masochism, exhibitionism, frotteurism, Necrophilia,” the curriculum added.

Further changes include doing away with the difference between 'gender identity' and 'sexual orientation' in the psychiatry module. The psychiatry module does not include any requirement for teaching students about “gender identity disorders”.

The revised curriculum for forensic medicine will instruct students on the relevant provisions of the new legislation, including the Bharatiya Nagarika Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS), and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA). Additionally, it will cover the pertinent legal frameworks for addressing cases involving rape, injury, and the protection of children from sexual offences.

"Describe social aspects of medico-legal cases with respect to victims of assault, rape, attempted suicide, homicide, domestic violence, dowry- related cases," the NMC's revised curriculum read.

In 2022, the NMC modified its syllabus to make the curriculum more friendly for the LGBTQ+ community. The modification included removing sodomy and “lesbianism” from unnatural sexual offences, making a distinction between sexual fetishes such as voyeurism, exhibitionism, or masochism and mental disorders stemming from such atypical interests, and teaching that a two-finger test for virginity is “unscientific, inhuman, and discriminatory.”

The NMC did not give a reason for the decision to reverse the Madras High Court's directive through the curriculum revision.