A day after the Tamil Nadu Health Minister Ma Subramanian refuted Governor RN Ravi’s allegations that the banned two-finger test was done on minor girls in Chidambaram, doctors’ associations in the state have also condemned the Governor’s remarks. In a recent interview with The Times of India, Governor Ravi had alleged that social welfare department officials had lodged false complaints of child marriage against two priests of the Chidambaram Natarajar temple out of “vengeance”. The Governor also alleged that minor daughters of the priests were forcibly taken to a government hospital and subjected to the banned two-finger test or ‘virginity test’, as part of the investigation.
Speaking to TNM, president of the Doctors’ Association for Social Equality (DASE) Dr GR Ravindranath said that the Governor had made very serious claims to the press without any evidence to back them. “It is an insult to doctors, who are aware of the banned practice of two-finger tests,” he said, adding that the Governor’s claims made light of the government doctors’ dedication to their work, and portrayed them in a poor light. “The Governor didn’t talk against the crime of child marriage and its repercussions, but went on and on about the alleged two-fingers test without any evidence to support his claims,” Ravindranath said.
Dr Shanthi Ravindranath of DASE said that it was “sad” to see the Governor bringing up child marriage survivors in a press interaction to allege that they were subjected to the two-finger test. “The girls must already be traumatised from being forced into child marriage. They have already had to go through a lot, during inquiries conducted by the social welfare department, police, and doctors,” she said, adding that the Governor’s claims are likely to further traumatise the girls.
According to Dr Shanthi, when a child marriage case is reported, the investigation officer and medical officer mainly need to ascertain that the survivor is under the age of 18 years. “There are several medical procedures including dental radiographs to estimate the victim’s age. It is absolutely unnecessary for anyone to go through the two-finger test to confirm that they are child marriage victims,” she said.
Dr Swaminathan, president of the Service Doctors and Post Graduates Association (SDPGA), called the Governor’s remarks intimidating and objectionable. “If someone went to the Governor and made such serious allegations, as the constitutional head of the state, he could have set up a committee to probe the matter and take disciplinary action against the concerned doctors. But he directly went to the press and made controversial statements,” Swaminathan said. He urged the Governor or any other higher authorities to verify such claims with any available evidence before going to the press.
Ravi’s comment over such a sensitive issue was complicated by accusing government doctors of breach of conduct, Swaminathan said. However, he added that the Governor's remarks have initiated a debate over abuse of children. “Everyone is now concerned about child sexual abuse. The health department has decided to conduct more seminars and discussions in clinical societies regarding child sexual abuse and the legal remedies available to survivors,” Swaminathan said.
The practice of conducting two-finger tests or ‘virginity tests’ on rape survivors was banned by the Supreme Court in 2013. The two-finger test is an unscientific and regressive procedure that involves the insertion of two fingers into a person’s vagina to gauge the laxity of vaginal muscles, thereby determining her ‘virginity’. It is based on the patriarchal assumption that a woman who is sexually active is less likely to have been sexually assaulted. Several judgements and research have shown that a person’s sexual history has no bearing on sexual assault.
Between September and October 2022, two Deekshitars from the Natarajar temple in Chidambaram in Cuddalore district – Pasupathy (the groom of a child marriage survivor), Ganapathy (the father of the child marriage survivor), and the secretary of the temple Hemasabesa (the father of another child marriage survivor) were arrested by the police following complaints of child marriage.
In his interview with ToI, Governor Ravi had alleged that the state government wanted to praise the excellent management of the Hindu Religious and Charity Endowment (HR&CE) Department and asked, “What happened in 2022 at the Chidambaram Nataraja temple, which is not under the HR&CE?” He suggested that the temple’s priests were unfairly targeted because the temple is not under the control of HR&CE. “Out of vengeance, government officers of the social welfare department lodged eight complaints of child marriage against the podhu deekshithars,” Ravi said, while claiming that no such child marriages had taken place. He alleged that the parents were arrested and jailed, while the young girls were forcibly taken to hospitals and forced to undergo the two-finger test.
On May 7, in a press meet, state Health Minister Ma Subramanian said, “It has already been clarified that the two-finger test was not done. As I have said before, the Governor is looking for accusations to make, even though he is unable to get any evidence for his accusations. That is why he has called on a little girl, poor thing, as a witness. His accusation has been denied already with proof.” Earlier, on May 5, Tamil Nadu Director General of Police, Sylendra Babu also refuted the Ravi’s claims. The DGP called Ravi’s allegations baseless and contrary to the truth.