Marital Rape judgement: Delhi high court delivers split verdict on criminalisation of marital rape

Marital Rape Verdict: Exception 2 of Section 375 of the Indian Penal Code decriminalises marital rape and mandates that sexual intercourse by a man with his wife is not rape.

File photo of Delhi High Court.

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday delivered split verdict on criminalisation of marital rape. Favouring the criminalisation, Justice Rajiv Shakdher said ...Read More

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• 11 May 2022, 03:55:28 PM IST

  Marital rape law: Why petitioners challenged exception under IPC in Delhi HC

  The Delhi High Court on Wednesday delivered a split verdict on the issue of criminalisation of marital rape and granted liberty to the petitioners to move the Supreme Court on this matter. Read More

• 11 May 2022, 03:33:46 PM IST

  ‘Shouldn’t follow west blindly': What Centre has been saying

  Earlier this year in January, the union government-led by Bharatiya Janata Party told the Delhi high court that just because other countries, mostly western, have criminalised marital rape does not necessarily mean India should follow them blindly. Read the story here

• 11 May 2022, 03:09:21 PM IST

  Union minister Smriti Irani said this on criminalisation of marital rape

  During a session in the Parliament on February 2, Minister of Women and Child Development, Smriti Irani, in response to Communist Party of India member of Parliament Binoy Viswam’s supplementary query on marital rape, had said that the protection of women and children is a priority but condemning every marriage as violent and every man a rapist is not advisable.

• 11 May 2022, 03:06:14 PM IST

  What govt says on marital rape

  Earlier, the central government had stated that considering the social impact involved, intimate family relations being the subject matter, and this Court not having the privilege of being fully familiarised with ground realities prevailing in different parts of society of this large, populous and diverse country, taking a decision merely based upon the arguments of a few lawyers may not serve the ends of justice.

• 11 May 2022, 03:03:00 PM IST

  Petitioner likely to move to SC: Report

  Karuna Nundy, one of the lawyers fighting to criminalise marital rape, says will move the Supreme Court, reported NDTV. 

• 11 May 2022, 02:51:09 PM IST

  What law says on marital rape

  The petitioners had challenged the constitutionality of the marital rape exception under Section 375 IPC (rape) on the ground that it discriminated against married women who are sexually assaulted by their husbands. Under the exception given in Section 375 of the IPC, sexual intercourse or sexual acts by a man with his wife, the wife not being minor, is not rape.

• 11 May 2022, 02:46:10 PM IST

  Who said what

  According to the order passed by Justice Rajiv Shakdher, husbands can be held criminally liable for sexual relations without the consent of the wife while Justice C Harishankar showed disagreement with this view.

• 11 May 2022, 02:44:26 PM IST

  Exception 2 of Section 375 of the IPC

  Exception 2 of Section 375 of the Indian Penal Code decriminalises marital rape and mandates that sexual intercourse by a man with his own wife, the wife not being under 18 years of age, is not rape.

• 11 May 2022, 02:36:05 PM IST

  Delhi HC grants liberty to petitioners to move to SC

  Following the split verdict, the Delhi high court granted liberty to the petitioners to move the Supreme Court on this matter. 

• 11 May 2022, 02:27:20 PM IST

  Delhi high court delivers split verdict on criminalisation of marital rape

  Delhi high court delivers split verdict on marital rape, while Justice J Rajiv Shakdher rules in favour of striking down IPC provision, Justice Hari Shankar say it doesn’t violate any law

• 11 May 2022, 02:25:31 PM IST

  Delhi High Court verdict on marital rape today

  The Delhi high court will deliver its verdict on Wednesday on a bunch of petitions seeking to criminalise marital rape.