As the debate surrounding marital rape criminalization intensifies, men’s rights activists start posting on social media using #marriagestrike.
Amid the current proceedings of the Delhi High Court surrounding the criminalization of marital rape in the country, social media has been flooded with the opinions of several activists and netizens, and a clear divide can be noticed in the views of men and women about the debate.
As the debate intensifies on social media, the hashtag #MarriageStrike started trending on Twitter, which showcased the opinion of many netizens, most of which were men, about how the criminalization of marital rape can lead to false accusations, and eventually wrongful conviction of men.
Countering this argument, many came forward speaking about how there is no justification for not criminalizing marital rape in India, and even terming those in favour of the #MarriageStrike activists as “potential rapists.”
What is the debate around marital rape?
The Delhi High Court is currently hearing several petitions that are seeking the criminalization of marital rape and removing any exceptions that exist under Section 385 under the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Surrounding this, a social debate has erupted on Twitterverse and the rest of social media.
For the unversed, Exception 2 under Section 375 states that any sexual act performed by a man on his own wife is not rape as long as the wife is not a minor. However, the act otherwise states that various acts if done against the will or consent of the woman, are defined as rape.
This has sparked a debate, of whether the act of marital rape should be criminalized or not. While some say that it should absolutely be termed as a grave offense, others are saying that this can lead to a lot of men being falsely accused by their wives, and even possible extortion.
#MarriageStrike turns into male vs female
While many men’s rights activists supported the #MarriageStrike movement, which essentially stands for men backing away from marriage at the fear of being falsely accused, a lot of women’s rights groups and activists stood up to call out such men for their “sexist” remarks.
Which side is the “right” side of the debate?
Though marital rape has been criminalized in most countries and is considered a serious offence, as with harassment and rape laws in India, the fear of getting falsely accused is real, similar to any offence in India.
The main distinction and prevention of false accusations and fair allegations depend on the definition of ‘consent’ set by the court. Though consent means the will or say of a person, there is often the consideration of “implied consent” and "expectation of conjugal sexual relationship" between a married couple.
There is no “right side” of the debate that has been picked by the Delhi High Court yet, but the proceedings of the court are going on and a decision regarding the same can be expected soon.
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 "As #MarriageStrike trends on social media, marital rape debate turns into battle of the sexes")
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