HC refuses more time to Centre to state stand on pleas to criminalise marital rape reserves verdict
New Delhi Feb 21 PTI The Delhi High Court Monday refused to grant more time to the Centre to place its stand on the issue of criminalisation of marital rape saying that it was not possible to defer an ongoing matter endlessly and reserved its judgement on the petitionsThe Centre submitted that it has sent communication to all states and Union Territories seeking their comments on the issue and urged the court that the proceedings be adjourned till such time the inputs are receivedHowever 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 Centres consultations will be over on the issue and added that it was closing the argumentsWe 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 While the Centre was supposed to begin its submissions on Monday by making its stand clear on the issue Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said the position could only be taken by the central government after consultations with states and other stakeholdersHe said that as this case could have an impact on social and family life with far reaching consequences the Centre can place its stand only after a consultative processThe bench said Court cant let the matter hang like this You can have consultation going on We will hear and reserve the judgement But if you say the court should adjourn the matter endlessly it will not happenThis is a matter which will be closed either through courts channel or legislatures channel As long as there is a challenge before us we will have to go on It is now coming to a situation where we are coming to a log jam When the court asked the law officer to tell whether it has ever happened that a matter of such nature is adjourned for long Mehta said as per his experience not yet and added that there are very few challenges which impact social and family tiesGenerally a legislative enactment is challenged and we take a stand But those are commercial or taxation laws There are very few cases when such wide consequences are found It is therefore our stand that we will be able to put our stand only for consultation he saidThe bench further said when Section 377 unnatural sex of IPC and adultery cases happened in the Supreme Court the court continued the hearingThe more I think about it the more I am convinced that you have to take a stand and close it We are not the last repository of wisdom Someone needs to take a call Justice Shakdher saidThe court said a decisive executive has to say yes or no and no one can stop it from changing its standTo this Mehta said We will say yes or no but after having consultations My instructions are that we will make a stand after consultations The counter affidavits filed earlier not be treated as final version of the Centre and the final version would be after consultation When the Solicitor General said I would not be able to go beyond what is stated in this counter affidavit the bench replied then lets close it after which is being argued now In its affidavit filed during the day the Centre said it is a considered stand of the central government that the stand to be taken before this court by it can only be after consultation with all the state governments and other stakeholdersThis is more so since the issues involved has a direct bearing on the society in general and is a part of Concurrent List of the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution said the affidavit filed through central government standing counsel Monika Arora saidIt said the central government has sent a communication on February 10 to the Chief Secretaries of all the State governments Union Territory Administrations as well as to the National Commission for WomenThe Centre is awaiting the response from all of them It is only thereafter that the Centre will be in a position to take a stand before this court it addedThe Central government reiterates its commitment to protect the liberty dignity and rights of every woman It is therefore desirable that the final adjudication by this court in the present batch of petitions be deferred till the view of the stakeholders is received by the Central government the affidavit saidThe court was dealing with a batch of petitions seeking to strike down the exception granted to husbands under the Indian rape lawOn February 7 the high court had granted two weeks to the Centre to state its stand on the petitions seeking criminalisation of marital rapeThe court was hearing PILs filed by NGOs RIT Foundation All India Democratic Womens Association a man and a woman seeking striking down of the exception granted to husbands under the Indian rape lawIn its 2017 affidavit the Centre had opposed the pleas submitting 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 husbandsHowever the Centre told the court in January that it was re-looking at its earlier stand on the petitions as that was brought on record in the affidavit filed several years agoThe petitioners have challenged the constitutionality of the marital rape exception under Section 375 IPC rape on the ground that it discriminated against married women who are sexually assaulted by their husbands PTI SKV SA
New Delhi Feb 21 PTI The Delhi High Court Monday refused to grant more time to the Centre to place its stand on the issue of criminalisation of marital rape saying that it was not possible to defer an ongoing matter endlessly and reserved its judgement on the petitionsThe Centre submitted that it has sent communication to all states and Union Territories seeking their comments on the issue and urged the court that the proceedings be adjourned till such time the inputs are receivedHowever 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 Centres consultations will be over on the issue and added that it was closing the argumentsWe 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 While the Centre was supposed to begin its submissions on Monday by making its stand clear on the issue Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said the position could only be taken by the central government after consultations with states and other stakeholdersHe said that as this case could have an impact on social and family life with far reaching consequences the Centre can place its stand only after a consultative processThe bench said Court cant let the matter hang like this You can have consultation going on We will hear and reserve the judgement But if you say the court should adjourn the matter endlessly it will not happenThis is a matter which will be closed either through courts channel or legislatures channel As long as there is a challenge before us we will have to go on It is now coming to a situation where we are coming to a log jam When the court asked the law officer to tell whether it has ever happened that a matter of such nature is adjourned for long Mehta said as per his experience not yet and added that there are very few challenges which impact social and family tiesGenerally a legislative enactment is challenged and we take a stand But those are commercial or taxation laws There are very few cases when such wide consequences are found It is therefore our stand that we will be able to put our stand only for consultation he saidThe bench further said when Section 377 unnatural sex of IPC and adultery cases happened in the Supreme Court the court continued the hearingThe more I think about it the more I am convinced that you have to take a stand and close it We are not the last repository of wisdom Someone needs to take a call Justice Shakdher saidThe court said a decisive executive has to say yes or no and no one can stop it from changing its standTo this Mehta said We will say yes or no but after having consultations My instructions are that we will make a stand after consultations The counter affidavits filed earlier not be treated as final version of the Centre and the final version would be after consultation When the Solicitor General said I would not be able to go beyond what is stated in this counter affidavit the bench replied then lets close it after which is being argued now In its affidavit filed during the day the Centre said it is a considered stand of the central government that the stand to be taken before this court by it can only be after consultation with all the state governments and other stakeholdersThis is more so since the issues involved has a direct bearing on the society in general and is a part of Concurrent List of the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution said the affidavit filed through central government standing counsel Monika Arora saidIt said the central government has sent a communication on February 10 to the Chief Secretaries of all the State governments Union Territory Administrations as well as to the National Commission for WomenThe Centre is awaiting the response from all of them It is only thereafter that the Centre will be in a position to take a stand before this court it addedThe Central government reiterates its commitment to protect the liberty dignity and rights of every woman It is therefore desirable that the final adjudication by this court in the present batch of petitions be deferred till the view of the stakeholders is received by the Central government the affidavit saidThe court was dealing with a batch of petitions seeking to strike down the exception granted to husbands under the Indian rape lawOn February 7 the high court had granted two weeks to the Centre to state its stand on the petitions seeking criminalisation of marital rapeThe court was hearing PILs filed by NGOs RIT Foundation All India Democratic Womens Association a man and a woman seeking striking down of the exception granted to husbands under the Indian rape lawIn its 2017 affidavit the Centre had opposed the pleas submitting 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 husbandsHowever the Centre told the court in January that it was re-looking at its earlier stand on the petitions as that was brought on record in the affidavit filed several years agoThe petitioners have challenged the constitutionality of the marital rape exception under Section 375 IPC rape on the ground that it discriminated against married women who are sexually assaulted by their husbands PTI SKV SA
