NMC withdraws guidelines about sodomy, lesbianism as unnatural sexual offences

New Delhi: In a swift reversal, the National Medical Commission (NMC) on Thursday announced the withdrawal and cancellation of controversial guidelines issued on August 31 under the Competency Based Medical Education (CBME) Curriculum. The guidelines had reintroduced sodomy and lesbianism as “unnatural sexual offences” in the forensic medicine and toxicology curriculum for undergraduate medical students, sparking widespread criticism.

The NMC’s statement confirmed that the circular dated August 31, 2024, which had reintroduced topics such as the hymen and its medico-legal significance, virginity, and defloration, was being “withdrawn and cancelled” with immediate effect. These topics had been removed from the curriculum in 2022 following a directive from the Madras High Court.

The revised curriculum under forensic medicine and toxicology also includes “Describe legal competencies including Bharatiya Nagarika Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS), Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA)” besides “Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO), Civil and Criminal Cases, Inquest (Police Inquest and Magistrate’s Inquest), and cognisable and non-cognisable offences”.

It talks about discussing sexual perversions, fetishism, transvestism, voyeurism, sadism, necrophagia, masochism, exhibitionism, frotteurism and necrophilia. However, distinctions between consensual sex between queer individuals have been removed, a source said.

The amended curriculum has done away with the seven-hour training on disability.

At the end of teaching-learning in forensic medicine and toxicology, the student should be able to understand the medico-legal framework of medical practice, codes of conduct, medical ethics, professional misconduct and medical negligence, conducting medico-legal examination and documentation of various medico-legal cases and understand latest Acts and laws related to medical professional including related court judgments, the NMC said in its document.