Even among those who seek justice, most fail to receive it. Imagine the trauma experienced by victims and their families after enduring years of legal battles, social harassment, repeated questioning, and public scrutiny, only to watch the accused eventually walk free. Such outcomes not only destroy confidence in the legal system but also send a dangerous message to offenders that accountability is unlikely. Certainly, false allegations may exist in some instances, as in any criminal offence, but it is impossible to believe that false accusations account for seventy per cent acquittals while only three per cent of accused offenders receive punishment.

One of the major reasons behind this alarming conviction gap lies within the legal definition of rape itself. Bangladesh continues to rely on a colonial-era definition that is outdated, narrow, and inadequate for addressing modern realities of sexual violence. This outdated framework has effectively become a protective shield for offenders because the legal threshold required to prove rape, remains extremely restrictive.

Although rape cases are prosecuted under the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act 2001, the Act itself does not define rape. Instead, courts continue to rely on Section 375 of the Penal Code of 1860. In other words, Bangladesh is still depending on a legal definition created more than 165 years ago during British colonial rule. While Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan all inherited the same Penal Code after partition, India has since taken significant steps to modernise its rape laws in response to changing social realities and increasing demands for justice.