- ABSTRACT
Rape in every form is considered heinous and must be criminalized with the strictest of the strictest punishments. However, the entire concept of the criminalization of marital rape seems to be flawed. The debate about the criminalization of marital rape has been an ongoing one for decades together in India. The Indian notion of marital rape needs reforms, as the Indian society, the Legislature, and the Judiciary, seem to overlook the seriousness of rape in a marital relationship. The Indian notion of criminalizing marital rape is yet to consider the fact that a woman before sexual intercourse must explicitly give her consent, irrespective of whether she is married or no. This paper seeks to draw a comparison between India’s marital rape laws and the rape laws in Germany. The comparison seeks to present the development of marital rape laws in Germany’s criminal code, and how India still has a long way to go before it can reach that stage of criminalization. The article further seeks to emphasize the constant attempts made by law committees, judges, and even the Indian public to recognize the urgency of criminalizing marital rape and making the legislature realize the same. The criminalization of marital rape in India still seems to be a bleak possibility due to the difficulty in proving the burden of proof and the age-old mindset of the Indian Judiciary. The reasons for why criminalizing marital rape is a serious matter, have been enumerated in the paper along with drawing persuasiveness from Germany and its rape laws[1].
Keywords: Notion, Judiciary, Traditional, Legislature, Comparison
[1]Gayatri Lakshmanan, ‘Criminalizing Marital Rape in India: A Bright or a Bleak Future?’, Oct. 9, 2024, 4:53 PM), https://salrj.thelawbrigade.com/articles/criminalizing-marital-rape-in-india-a-bright-or-a-bleak-future/.