Sex With Minor Wife, Even Though Consensual, Amounts To Rape: Bombay HC Upholds 10-Year Jail Term For Man

The Bombay High Court has ruled that consensual sex with a minor wife constitutes rape, stating that such a legal defence is not permissible under Indian law.

The Nagpur Bench of the High Court upheld a 10-year sentence for a man convicted after his wife filed a rape complaint against him, reported India Today.

In its ruling, the bench, led by Justice GA Sanap, clarified that the age of consent is above 18 years old, stating, "It needs to be stated that sexual intercourse with a girl below 18 years of age is rape, regardless of whether she is married or not."

The court further emphasised, "The defence of consensual sex with the wife is not available when the age of the wife or the girl, who is alleged to be the wife, is below 18 years of age."

The conviction and 10-year sentence for the accused were upheld by the High Court, following the lower court's ruling.

The case stemmed from an incident in which the man forcibly engaged in sexual intercourse with the complainant, leading to her pregnancy. He later married her, but their marriage deteriorated, prompting the woman to file a rape complaint.

"Even if it is assumed for the sake of argument that there was a so-called marriage between them, in view of the allegations made by the victim that it was sexual intercourse against her consent, it would constitute rape," the High Court remarked.

At the time of the incident, the accused was a neighbour of the victim, who lived with her father, sisters, and grandmother in Maharashtra's Wardha. The accused and the survivor had been in a romantic relationship for 3-4 years before the 2019 complaint, though the survivor had consistently rejected his advances for physical intimacy.

Due to financial difficulties, the survivor moved to a nearby town for work, where the accused followed her, offering rides to her workplace. He eventually coerced her into a sexual relationship, which resulted in her pregnancy.

The accused initially promised to marry her and staged a "farce marriage" in a rented room, with neighbours present, according to the victim's account. However, his behaviour became abusive, involving physical assaults and attempts to pressure her into an abortion. He later denied paternity, accusing her of having the child with another man.

Unable to endure the abuse, the survivor filed a police complaint in May 2019, leading to the accused's arrest.

In his defence, the accused claimed that the sexual relationship was consensual and that the survivor was his wife. However, Justice Sanap rejected this argument, stating, "In my view, this submission cannot be accepted for more than one reason. In this case, the prosecution has proved that the victim on the date of commission of the crime was below 18 years of age."

The bench also noted that DNA tests confirmed that both the accused and the victim were the biological parents of the male child born from their relationship.