Delhi HC reserves judgement on batch of petitions relating to criminalisation of marital rape

New Delhi, Feb 21: Refusing to grant further time to the Centre to make its stand clear on the issue, the Delhi High Court on Monday reserved its judgment in a bunch of petitions seeking criminalisation of marital rape.

The Centre submitted that it has sent communication to all states and Union territories asking their comments on the issue and urged the court that the proceedings be adjourned till such time the inputs are received.

A bench of Justices Rajiv Shakdher and C Hari Shankar said it was not possible to adjourn an ongoing matter as there is no terminal date by when the Centre's consultations will be over on the issue. "We are closing it then," the bench said, adding, "judgement reserved. List for directions on March 2.

In the meantime, counsel for parties may file their written submissions and compliations." The court was dealing with a batch of petitions seeking to strike down the exception granted to husbands under the Indian rape law.

On February 7, the high court had granted two weeks time to the Centre to state its stand on the petitions seeking criminalization of marital rape.

The Centre had filed an affidavit urging the court to defer hearing on the petitions, stating that criminalising marital rape has very far reaching socio-legal implications in the country and a meaningful consultative process with various stakeholders including the state governments is needed.

Justice C Hari Shankar, who formed part of the division bench hearing a batch of petitions seeking criminalisation of marital rape, orally observed that a non-marital relation, no matter how close, and a marital relationship cannot be "parallelised".

In 2018, the city government had told the predecessor bench hearing the case - headed by then Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal - that wherever a spouse indulged in sexual relations without the willingness of the other, it was already an offence under IPC and a woman was entitled to refuse sexual relations with her husband as the right to bodily integrity and privacy under Article 21 (protection of life and personal liberty) of the Constitution.

The central government, in its affidavit filed in the case, has said that marital rape cannot be made a criminal offence as it could become a phenomenon that may destabilise the institution of marriage and an easy tool for harassing the husbands.

The NGOs have challenged the constitutionality of section 375 IPC on the ground that it discriminated against married women being sexually assaulted by their husbands.

The hearing in the case will continue on March 2.