The Delhi High Court on Tuesday, 9 July, declined to entertain a plea seeking direction to the Centre to frame guidelines for registration of FIR for marital rape as also laws for making it a ground for divorce.
A bench of Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice C Hari Shankar disposed of the PIL saying the court cannot direct framing of laws as it is the domain of the legislature and not the Judiciary.
THE BACKDROP
The PIL had sought that there should be a clear guideline for registration of cases related to marital rape under framed guidelines and laws, so that accountability, responsibility and liability of the authorities concerned can be fixed.
The plea was filed in the high court after the Supreme Court refused to entertain it and asked the petitioner, advocate Anuja Kapur, to approach the high court for relief.
BIG POINT
“Marital rape is no less an offence than murder, culpable homicide or rape per se. It denigrates the honour and dignity of a human being, and reduces her to a chattel to be utilised for one’s self convenience and comfort. It reduces a woman to a corpse, living under the constant fear of hurt or injury. Medical evidence proves that rape has severe and long-lasting consequences for women.”Kapur’s Plea
Kapur said in her plea that at present there is an ambiguity in the implementation of the context of marital rape as a ground of punishment or penalty during the registration of such a case in ambit of law.
“Five out of every 100 women in India reported that their husband had physically forced them to have sexual intercourse with him even when they didn’t want it. At the state level 11.4 percent women in Bihar, 10.6 percent in Manipur, 9 percent in Tripura, 7.4 percent in West Bengal, 7.3 percent in Haryana and 7.1 percent in Arunachal Pradesh reported that they were physically forced by their husbands to have sexual intercourse with them even when they did not want to.”Kapur’s Plea
DID YOU KNOW?
Since marital rape at present is not a crime, there is no FIR registered by a wife against her husband in any police station, the plea said.
Rather, it is being compromised by the police authorities to maintain the sanctity of the marriage between the victim and the husband, it had added.
"As marital rape is not a ground for a divorce in Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act, 1937 and Special Marriage Act, 1954, it cannot be used as a ground for divorce and cruelty against husband," it said.
(With inputs from PTI)
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