SC assures to take up hearing on pleas concerning marital rape
Jan 17, 2024
New Delhi [India], January 17 : The Supreme Court on Wednesday gave assurance on hearing the pleas concerning marital rape issues.
Advocate Karuna Nundy, appearing for petitioner, said the bench headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud stated that the matter was listed for the day and it has been pending for long.
The court said that it would take the matter between the constitutional benches.
Various petitions were filed in the Supreme Court challenging the constitutional validity of the exception to marital rape issue.
One petition is against the Karnataka High Court judgement, which declined to quash the charge of rape against a man accused of raping and keeping his wife as a sex slave.
Another petition has sought striking down of Exception 2 to Section 375 of Indian Penal Code, which provides immunity to the husband of criminal charges for non-consensual sex with the wife in a marital relationship. The petition was filed by one activist Ruth Manorama, through advocate on record, Ruchira Goel.
Exception 2 to Section 375 of the Indian Penal Code, which defines rape, states that sexual intercourse by a man with his wife is not rape, unless the wife is below 15 years of age.
Earlier, All India Democratic Women's Association (AIDWA) among others has moved the Supreme Court against Delhi High Court's split verdict on the issue relating to criminalising marital rape matter.
Two-judge Bench of Delhi High Court on May 12 2022 pronounced split verdict on issue relating to criminalising marital rape. Delhi HC's Judge Justice Rajiv Shakdher ruled in favour of criminalising while Justice Hari Shankar disagreed with the opinion and held that Exception 2 to Section 375 does not violate the Constitution as it is based on intelligible differences.
AIDWA was represented by advocate Karuna Nundy and the plea was filed through advocate Rahul Narayan.
AIDWA, in its plea had said that the exception allowed to marital rape is destructive and in opposition to the object of rape laws, which clearly ban sexual activity sans consent. It places the privacy of a marriage at a pedestal above the rights of the woman in the marriage, the plea said.
The petition said that Marital Rape Exception is in violation of Articles 14, 19(1)(a) and 21 of the Constitution.
