Marital rape? Marriage sacred in India, says government

In a statement that could entangle the government in a major controversy and sully its image of a liberal, equitable democracy at the world forum, the government on Wednesday said the concept of marital rape cannot be applied in the Indian context as marriage is considered sacred here.

"It is considered that the concept of marital rape, as understood internationally, cannot be suitably applied in the Indian context due to various factors, including level of education, illiteracy, poverty, myriad social customs and values, religious beliefs, mindset of the society to treat the marriage as a sacrament," said minister of state for home, Haribhai Parathibhai Chaudhary in reply to a question by DMK MP, Kanimozhi.

Kanimozhi had asked the home ministry whether the government would bring a bill to amend the Indian Penal Code to remove the exception of marital rape from the definition of rape; and whether it is a fact that the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) against women has recommended to India to criminalise marital rape.

While admitting that CERD has recommended to India to criminalise marital rape, the minister said, "The Law Commission of India, while making its 172nd Report on Review of Rape Laws, did not recommend criminalization of marital rape by amending the Exception to Section 375 of the Indian Penal Code and hence presently there is no proposal to bring any amendment to the IPC in this regard."

The statement has come in for severe criticism from various quarters, especially women activists.

Dubbing it a perverted understanding, CPM politburo member Brinda Karat said, "If they believe Indian culture was based on coercive sex then it is a perverted understanding... The entire concept of consent or definition of rape does not change with a marriage certificate."

Secretary of All India Progressive Women's Association, Kavita Krishnan said, "Extrapolation of this argument would mean that married women are supposed to undergo every kind of ill-treatment meted to them and cannot even seek a divorce. This is akin to the 19th century argument that was given to uphold child marriages. I'm open to look into the merits to criminalise or not to criminalise marital rape or to have some safeguards but the argument that the concept of marital rape cannot be applied because marriage is treated as a sacrament is abhorring."

In a survey report, two-thirds of the male respondents admitted to having forced unnatural contact with their spouses, which means it is a widespread sickness that needs to be tackled and cannot be brushed way but the parliamentarians and the government does not want to acknowledge it, Krishnan added.

The BJP was evasive on the minister's comment. It said the matter should be left to the country's law-making authorities.

Party spokesperson Meenakshi Lekhi said marital rape was recognised under the IPC though the punishment was not as stringent. "We will give prominence to our institutions. The Law Commission is aware of the social realities.... The system works differently in India."

BJP's Shaina NC said she agreed that the concept as understood internationally cannot be applied to India. "There are atrocities that need to be addressed but it should be done through a domestic violence bill."