Pleas Challenging Marital Rape Exception : Live Updates From Supreme Court
LIVELAW NEWS NETWORK
17 Oct 2024 12:25 PM IST
The Supreme Court is hearing today a batch of petitions seeking the criminalisation of marital rape.
The petitioners challenge the constitutional validity of the exception of Section 375 of the Indian Penal Code which hold that sexual intercourse between a husband and wife will not come within the ambit of the offence of rape. The same provision is found in Section 63 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, which is the replacement of S.375 IPC. Some petitions challenge the BNS provision too.
A bench comprising Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, Justice JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra is hearing the matter.
The Union in its recent affidavit opposed the Court criminalising marital rape. The Union stated that alternative remedies in law already exist to protect married women against sexual violence and attracting the offence of "rape" to the institution of marriage may be "excessively harsh" and disproportionate.
Follow this thread for live-updates.
Live Updates
- 17 Oct 2024 12:47 PM IST
Nandy : Explanation 2 - in this jurisdiction yes means yes
Explanation 2.—Consent means an unequivocal voluntary agreement when the woman by words, gestures or any form of verbal or non-verbal communication, communicates willingness to participate in the specific sexual act:
- 17 Oct 2024 12:46 PM IST
Nandy reads S.63 BNS
A man is said to commit “rape” if he—
(a) penetrates his penis, to any extent, into the vagina, mouth, urethra or anus of a woman or makes her to do so with him or any other person; or
(b) inserts, to any extent, any object or a part of the body, not being the penis, into the vagina, the urethra or anus of a woman or makes her to do so with him or any other person; or
(c) manipulates any part of the body of a woman so as to cause penetration into the vagina, urethra, anus or any part of body of such woman or makes her to do so with him or any other person; or
(d) applies his mouth to the vagina, anus, urethra of a woman or makes her to do so with him or any other person, under the circumstances falling under any of the following seven descriptions:—
(i) against her will;
(ii) without her consent;
(iii) with her consent, when her consent has been obtained by putting her or any person in whom she is interested, in fear of death or of hurt;
(iv) with her consent, when the man knows that he is not her husband and that her consent is given because she believes that he is another man to whom she is or believes herself to be lawfully married;
(v) with her consent when, at the time of giving such consent, by reason of unsoundness of mind or intoxication or the administration by him personally or through another of any stupefying or unwholesome substance, she is unable to understand the nature and consequences of that to which she gives consent;
(vi) with or without her consent, when she is under eighteen years of age;
(vii) when she is unable to communicate consent.