Intersecting injustices: Marginalisation and legal barriers in sexual violence cases across South Asia

Women and girls from Dalit, Adivasi/Indigenous communities, and those with disabilities face profound, intersecting barriers when seeking justice for sexual violence across South Asia. These include police refusal to register cases, misreporting, credibility bias, inaccessible justice institutions, lack of accommodations, procedural delays and pressure from extra-legal bodies. Geographic isolation and economic insecurity further restrict access to police, courts and medical care. These systemic failures result in low conviction rates and high impunity.

To address these inequities, South Asian governments must:

• Enforce and strengthen anti-discrimination laws addressing caste, indigeneity and disability.
• Guarantee reasonable accommodations for survivors with disabilities, including accessible facilities and communication support.
• Expand access in remote areas through mobile courts and mobile legal aid.
• Reform investigative and forensic procedures and ensure survivor-centred protocols.
• Mandate continuous training for police, prosecutors, and judges on gender, caste, disability inclusion, and bias-free handling of cases.
• Clear case backlogs and improve justice system monitoring.
• Collect and publish disaggregated data (caste, indigeneity, disability).
• Lead awareness campaigns in local languages on rights, laws and available services.
• Strengthen coordination among justice actors to ensure transparency and accountability.

These steps are essential to reduce impunity and ensure meaningful access to justice for marginalised survivors.