India, Feb. 18 -- The Supreme Court on Tuesday set aside a controversial March 2025 judgment of the Allahabad High Court, which had held that grabbing a minor girl's breasts and dragging her under a culvert did not amount to an attempt to rape, calling the ruling a result of a "patently erroneous application of the settled principles of criminal jurisprudence."

At the same time, the court moved to address a broader concern regarding the lack of sensitivity and compassion in judicial handling of sexual offence cases, by requesting the National Judicial Academy, Bhopal, to constitute a committee of experts to frame comprehensive guidelines for judges and courts across the country.

The bench, led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and co...