A recent Tokyo court ruling ordering a teen idol to pay damages for violating a "no dating" clause in her contract has spurred an online outcry, reigniting debate over an industry many say is rife with male-chauvinist views.

The Tokyo District Court on Sept. 18 ordered a 17-year-old former member of an unidentified idol group to pay her agency ¥650,000 in damages for going to a hotel with a male fan, in what it found to be a breach of her contract, which prohibited her from getting into a relationship. Her romance with the man surfaced in October 2013, three months after her six-member group debuted, forcing the band to subsequently disband, according to the ruling.

"With her being a female idol, the no-dating policy was necessary for her to win support from male fans," presiding Judge Akitomo Kojima said.