Sex with Wife Below 18 Will Be Considered Rape🔊: SC

In a major decision, the SC ruled that sexual intercourse with a wife under 18 years of age will be considered rape.

This comes two months after the government defended its controversial stand in the SC saying men can force their wife aged 15-17 for sex without consequences.

Ironically, according to Indian law, marriage of a woman under 18 is considered child marriage. Under Section 375(2) of the IPC, a man can force his wife for sex if she's above 15 without fearing legal consequences. According to the government, this clause helped protect the "institution of marriage". Otherwise, children from such marriages will suffer." Counsel Binu Tamta also argued how marriage between minors wasn't "void", but "voidable".

A petition by NGO Independent Thought challenged Section 375(2). It raised the lack of consistency in defining a 'child' in marriage laws and rape laws.

It argued the same law criminalized consensual sex by an unmarried girl aged 15-17. "Then why should a (married) girl of the same age suffer?" According to government data, there are 23mn child brides in India.

UCJ, UNILORIN.