The Supreme Court on Wednesday, 11 October, ruled that sex with wife between 15 and 18 years of age will be a punishable offence under the IPC.
A man can now be prosecuted for rape if the minor wife files a complaint, said the apex court.
The apex court said that Exception 2 to Section 375 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) – which exempts marital rape of girls between the age of 15 and 18 from the purview of rape – is violative of Article 14, 15 and 21 of the Constitution. The age of consent is 18 years.
The Supreme Court said the exception in the rape law was contrary to the philosophy of other statutes and violates the bodily integrity of a girl child.
A bench, comprising Justice Madan B Lokur and Deepak Gupta, also expressed concern over the prevalent practise of child marriage in the country and said social justice laws were not implemented with the spirit with which they have been enacted by Parliament.
The bench clarified that it has not dealt with the issue of marital rape as it was not raised before it by respective parties.
Justice Gupta, who wrote a separate but concurrent verdict, said the age of marriage was 18 in all laws and the exception given in the rape law under the IPC is “capricious, arbitrary and violates the rights of a girl child”.
(With inputs from PTI)
