The Delhi government, which started its arguments after the conclusion of the petitioner's submissions, stated that a woman is entitled to refuse sexual relations
The Delhi government on Thursday opposed criminalising of marital rape saying that it is already an offence under existing laws.
The Delhi government, which started its arguments after the conclusion of the petitioner's submissions, stated that a woman is entitled to refuse sexual relations with her husband as all women have the right to bodily integrity and privacy, married or unmarried, under Article 21 (protection of life and personal liberty) of the Constitution.
Appearing for the Delhi government, its Additional Standing Counsel, Nandita Rao said, "Marital rape is an offence under section 498A of IPC and the language of which is similar to personal law and the domestic violence law."
The submissions were made before a bench of Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C Hari Shankar during the hearing of a bunch of pleas seeking criminalisation of marital rape.
Rao said that a court cannot add an offence or impose punishment under the law as it is the prerogative of the legislature. The submissions assume significance as one of the reasons given by the Centre for not making marital rape a criminal offence was that it could be "misused".
She also contended that "there is an intelligible difference between married and unmarried people as the preoccupation with penetration — which is an offence under Section 375 — trivialised non-penetrative sexual abuse in a marriage that is dehumanising to wives and therefore marital rape under the Domestic Violence Act has been given a broader definition more akin to Article 498A".
The court was hearing PILs by NGOs RIT Foundation, All India Democratic Women's Association and by two individuals, who have sought striking down of the exception in the Indian penal law that does not consider sexual intercourse with a minor wife, above 15 years of age, as rape.
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