. FROM SHAME TO SUPPORT: CULTURAL CRIMINOLOGY OF VICTIM BLAMING IN INDIAN COMMUNITIES
AUTHOR- JENIMETTILDA J, STUDENT AT TAMILNADU DR. AMBEDKAR LAW UNIVERSITY
BEST CITATION – JENIMETTILDA J, FROM SHAME TO SUPPORT: CULTURAL CRIMINOLOGY OF VICTIM BLAMING IN INDIAN COMMUNITIES, INDIAN JOURNAL OF LEGAL REVIEW (IJLR), 5 (14) OF 2025, PG. 758-772, APIS – 3920 – 0001 & ISSN – 2583-2344.
ABSTRACT
Victim blaming remains one of the most enduring cultural and criminological challenges in India, shaping how survivors of sexual and gender-based violence are perceived, treated, and supported. This study applies a cultural criminology framework to examine how patriarchal norms, caste hierarchies, honour-based expectations, and religious interpretations collectively determine public and institutional responses to survivors. Despite significant legal reforms particularly the Criminal Law Amendments of 1983, 2013, 2018 and Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita,2023 victims blaming continues to infiltrate policing practices, judicial reasoning, media narratives, and digital interactions. The research reveals that survivors are often required to defend their morality, behaviour, and social standing before their claims are taken seriously, thereby reproducing historical prejudices rooted in colonial law, caste power structures, and patriarchal control. Through an interdisciplinary analysis of case law, statutory developments, and socio-cultural patterns, the study argues that legal reform alone cannot dismantle entrenched narratives of shame. A shift toward a survivor-centric justice model requires trauma-informed institutional procedures, community-level transformation of honour-based gender norms, strengthened cyber protections, and ethical media conduct. The findings underscore the need for a holistic cultural and structural shift from a system that implicitly blames survivors to one that affirms dignity, agency, and support.
KEYWORDS -Victim blaming; Cultural criminology; Sexual violence; Indian criminal justice system; Patriarchy; Caste and gender; Honour norms; Digital shaming; Media ethics; Survivor-centric justice; Trauma-informed policing; Gender norms in India